----------------------------------------------------------------------- Ed Dukeshire and Mike Imboden Present: THE COMIC BOOK NET ELECTRONIC MAGAZINE ISSUE NUMBER 363 4/12/2002 Edited by: David LeBlanc - ComicBkNet@aol.com Winner of the 2000 EAGLE AWARD as FAVORITE COMICS E-ZINE! FREE VIA EMAIL SINCE FEBRUARY 1995 ______________________________________________________________________ C O N T E N T S ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [A] Submissions, mailing address, web page [1] On the Net ............................ David LeBlanc [2] Letters to the Editor ................. Your Page! [3] TRIVIA CONTEST ........................ Win *real* prizes! [4] Network Buzz .......................... News, gossip & rumors [5] Interview:Jimmy Palmiotti! ............ Paul Dale Roberts [6] Interview:Christopher Golden .......... Tim O'Shea [7] Comics Culture Shrapnel ............... Kris Naudus [8] Eisner Nominees ....................... Comicon International [9] A View From the Cheap Seats ........... Rich Watson [10] Stream of Babbling .................... Tim O'Shea [11] Graphic Novel Reviews ................. Amy Harlib [12] E-Dispatches from the Great White North! ....... Jonathan A. Gilbert [13] Permit Me to be Frank ................. Bruce W. Cashman [14] Linnen's Look At Comics ............... Brian Linnen [15] O'Shea's Offhand Opinions ............. Tim O'Shea [16] M.O.E. Reviews ........................ Paul Dale Roberts [17] My View:THE 3RD DEGREE, NODWICK, DORK TOWER, BLACK TIDE .............. David LeBlanc [18] New Comic Book Releases List .......... Charles LePage [19] HYPE! Section ......................... Various ______________________________________________________________________ World Wide Web Home Page-->> http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet Mailed by Yahoo!: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ComicBookNetworkEmag AOL text copies in Sci-Fi Library II - Keyword aol://4400:3990 HTML WEB EDITION at -->> http://www.digitalwebbing.com/cbem featuring a week's worth of the online strips: Steve Conley's ASTOUNDING SPACE THRILLS AND DR. CYBORG by Alan Gross & Mike Oeming ----------------------------------------------------------------------- o \o/ _ o _| \ / |_ o_ \o/ o /|\ | /\ _\o \o | o/ O/_ /\ | /|\ / \ / \ |\ /) | ( \ /o\ / ) | (\ / | / \ / \ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The ComicBook Network was founded by Ed Dukeshire and Mike Imboden ----------------------------------------------------------------------- If you wish to receive each issue automatically through your Email account, FREE, please send a message FROM that account TO: ComicBookNetworkEmag-subscribe@yahoogroups.com To UNSUBSCRIBE send a message FROM the account to be dropped to: ComicBookNetworkEmag-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com See section [A] for the address to mail material to be reviewed. ______________________________________________________________________ All text contained within is copyrighted to the originating author(s). Except where elsewhere noted, The Comic Book Net Electronic Magazine is Copyright 2002 by The ComicBook Network. You may freely distribute or retransmit this file intact without alteration for noncommercial purposes only. Except for personal archiving, permission must be obtained from the individual authors to reproduce, retransmit, or publish any part of this magazine. Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the Editor, the Network Administration Team or the members and users of The ComicBook Network. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [A] E-Mag Info: Submissions, Back Issues, Web Page SUBMISSIONS ----------- To submit an article, review, column, etc. to our Emag, simply Email it to the editor at: ComicBkNet@aol.com You must include your REAL name and a valid Email address in order to be published in this Emag. Sorry, we do not accept anonymous columns. Reviews of mainstream books are welcome and we encourage reviews of indies and self published material as we feel that material deserves more exposure to the general public. If you write intelligent, coherent, and timely reviews of any comic book it will almost always be printed, so give us a shot. Commentary on the state of the industry, and personal observations and reflections related to comics are *most* likely to be included in our publication. PLEASE, no material on Gaming, role playing, collectible card games or other hobbies or collectibles other than comic books. That also includes plugs for web pages UNLESS they are concerned with print comic books. We do not promote web comics as we do not consider them to be comic books. SEND US YOUR WORK ----------------- We also accept product for review purposes. Advanced copies of comic books will not be returned but any comic books sent to us *will* be reviewed in the ComicBook Net Emag. Send all material to: David L. LeBlanc 84 Heather Circle Jefferson, MA 01522-1419 Material is generally reviewed in the order received and be advised that we work a few weeks in advance so your review may not be in the magazine immediately. Advanced copies are therefore encouraged so the review will occur prior to your product hitting the stores. THE Comic Book Net WEB PAGE http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet ---------------- If you have access to the World Wide Web, please stop by and visit our web page! On our web page, you can find the latest issue of our E-Mag, as well as all back issues and an annotated index. You'll also find important information and other neat features like links to the HTML version of the current issue of this magazine at DIGITAL WEBBING, [http://www.digitalwebbing.com/cbem], some of the comic companies and creators' web pages and many other Comic Book related links! You can also find some of our back issues at America Online, by going to Keyword: COMICS, then choose the menu item _Comic Book Forum_ and then going to the _Comics Library_ from there. These are non-zipped text files. AOL search/keyword: aol://4400:3990 ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] On the Net David LeBlanc ComicBkNet@aol.com This past Monday on NBC at 10:00 the regular episode of CROSSING JORDAN dealt with the Medical Examiner's estranged father. It seems he has been a let down to his son all his life, the height of which was during his childhood. After giving him a copy of BATMAN #1 he later took it back to sell to feed his gambling habit. I thought it was just a passing comment to show the relationship, until the very end of the show when it tied back in. A true comic fan can appreciate it much more than the average person. I think you will find something to appreciate in these new comics on the stands . . . ABSTRACT STUDIOS Strangers In Paradise Vol III #48, $2.95 AVATAR PRESS Ennis & Mccreas Bigger Dicks #1 (Of 4), $4.95 CROSSGEN COMICS Forge #1, $9.95 Negation #5, $2.95 Sigil #23, $2.95 Sojourn #10, $2.95 <------------- Pick of the Week! DC COMICS Green Arrow #13 (resolicited), $2.50 Lab Rats #1, $2.50 Power Company #3, $2.50 Suicide Squad #8, $2.50 DORK STORM PRESS Dork Tower #17 (resolicited), $2.99 Nodwick #13, $2.99 Pvp #5, $2.99 LITTLE ROCKET PUBLICATIONS Wild Stars Vol 3 #6, $2.95 PETER FOUR PRODUCTIONS INC Specwar #1, $3.25 WIZARD ENTERTAINMENT Just A Pilgrim Garden Of Eden #2 (Of 4), $2.99 magazines Comics International #144, $2.25 I am going to try and get this one out at a reasonable time so let's get on with it. David LeBlanc - ComicBkNet@aol.com Editor The Comic Book Net Electronic Magazine ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [2] Letters to the Editor If you want to comment on this or any previous issue, want to offer something for us to publish, or just want to shamelessly suck up to the editor to try and get your name in print send Email to: ComicBkNet@aol.com Note: Letters of comment, including those sent to the columnists, may be used in future issues of CBEM unless you specifically request us NOT to use them. Your Email address and/or name will be withheld upon request. +++++ Subj:Trivia From:baltulis@hotmail.com David, I'll take Zatanna on the Supergirl series. [Sorry, not in time to win. - D.L.] I continue to enjoy the e-mag, and your reply to the letter taking offense with Left Behind was right on the money. If only we were all more tolerant regarding religious, or things that might be considered religious, opinion... Regards, Tony Baltulis [Thanks Tony, but it seems it is often our own belief system that slants the way we interpret what we read - be it a work of fiction, or commentary on the same. - D.L.] +++++ Subj:Re: kerzner@idirect.com From:Address withheld on request David, I see the point kerzner was making in regard to your thoughts on "Left Behind." I also agree that you are certainly entitled to your opinion and to recommend a book that is preaching Christianity if you so choose. However, being Jewish myself, like kerzner, I did indeed get the feeling that you were attempting to get readers not to just give "Left Behind" a chance, but to give Christianity a chance. I don't think you ever meant the e-mag to be a forum for such and, more so, from your response to kerzner, it seems that was apparently not even your intent, but it certainly came off that way to me as well. I wouldn't be surprised if many readers took your opinions on the book in that vain. Just thought you'd like to know. Take care and thanks for a great e-mag! Keith Planit [Kerzner said Left Behind has an underlying theme of hate. I doubt very much if he even attempted to read it (the comic book) or the original novel. He and you are free to believe whatever you want about it but I suggest you not prejudge it. Since there is an obvious bias (that is not an evil word, we all have biases) against the beliefs of the authors brought with that reading the conclusions drawn will be different than that of a Christian, or Muslim, or Agnostic or anyone else. My endorsement was from someone who is naturally more sympathetic to the underlying message (not one of hate) but did not miss the fact that it was a good story with strong characterization and solid art. I would have recommended it if it was about Ragnarok or some other religious end of the world scenario. I think Kerner's knee-jerk reaction - a Christian endorsing a comic involving Christians is nothing more than preaching his faith - meant he missed the the point. The point, as always, is to promote good comics. - D.L.] +++++ Subj:Letter to the editor: Give a little thought when making demands From:tim_jen@mindspring.com To:ComicBkNet@aol.com David: I read with interest the letter in CBEM 362 that claimed LEFT BEHIND was an example of "...Christian fiction, with it's underlying hate- filled message..." I've not read LEFT BEHIND, I have no interest, despite it coming highly recommended from various sources that I respect (including yourself). After 12 years of Catholic school (please no comments from the peanut gallery) plus my ongoing experience as a practicing Catholic, I've had my fill of fiction and nonfiction Christian publications. That being said, if a publication is hateful toward Jews, I'd like to know how. I think a best-selling product that is hateful should be "outed" and brought to folks' attention. I'd like some evidence first. I'd like a letter that fostered some discussion. Your letter writer from last week who wished to remain anonymous really cheated the CBEM readers and himself out of a dialogue that could have fostered a greater understanding from both sides. Anonymous failed to provide an insightful argument that garnered support for his stand, in my opinion. So while I wish we could have more letter writers, I hope that they take a little time to think out their thoughts before making any demands of anyone. In fact, if anonymous would care to elaborate, I look forward to seeing him (or her) contribute to the letters page again. As always, a great issue and thanks for the forum, Tim O'Shea www.orcarfresh.net and www.digitalwebbing.com/cbem +++++ Subj:April 28th Collectible Show MA From:ColonialToys Colonial Toy & Collectible Show 8,000 SQ. Feet April 28, 2002 Sheraton Colonial Center, Wakefield MA Route 128 (I-95), Exit 43 Show Hours 9:00AM - 3:00PM Admission: $4.00 Show and Dealer Info: Eric Bergstrom 781-640-9777 ColonialToys@aol.com www.colonialtoys.com +++++ Subj:"Spark Generators" signing! Date:4/10/02 2:51:41 PM Eastern Daylight Time From:JonBeanHastings@cs.com Hey, If you've got the time this Saturday and are in the vicinity of the Cartoon Art Museum (655 Mission Street, San Francisco around the corner from SFMOMA), you all should stop by for the "Spark Generators" signing, from 1-3 PM. Myself, Trina Robbins, Lee Binswanger, Julie Bini Quinn and Jeff Bonivert will all be there and you can see the nifty "Calvin and Hobbes" and Edward Gorey exhibits. "Spark Generators," in case I haven't assaulted you with the details yet, is a benefit anthology I edited for the Museum, featuring 25 artist's stories about their influences. It has already raised $5,000 for the Museum. For more info, go to www.cartoonart.org. Hope to see you there, Jon _________________ Jon "Bean" Hastings KiwiStudios@Compuserve.com www.BEANTOONS.com +++++ Subj:My book Date:4/12/02 6:56:01 AM Eastern Daylight Time From:bcrog@juno.com Dear everybody, With sincere regret, it looks like I won't be publishing my book, The Brent Clark Rogers Guide to the DC Universe in time for the Motor City ComiCon in May. I had planned on having everything ready, but on Wednesday March 13th, my Mom passed away quite unexpectedly. My daughter Ada & I are having a hard time dealing with it. Ada was the one who found her that morning on her way to school. I got my determination & strong work ethic from my Mom, she was just a few weeks shy of turning 78 & still working 6 days a week! She walked the mile to work every morning & a mile back home every night. I've always wanted to bring her to a comicon, to show her just how wonderful they really are, now I'll never get the chance. The one high point of all of this is that she's now with Dad. I can feel their happiness all of the way down here on Earth, and that warms both Ada's & my hearts through & through. Putting her house up for sale is extremely hard for us, but "ya gotta do what ya gotta do!" Thanks for letting me ramble. Tell those you love, how much you love them, tomorrow may be too late. Sincerely, Brent Clark Rogers BCROG@juno.com [You have our condolences Brent. - D.L.] ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [3] [TRIVIA CONTEST] **THE FIRST PLACE TO FIND THE EMAG EACH WEEK IS ON OUR HOME PAGE!** IF YOU ARE DESPERATE TO WIN THE TRIVIA, GO THERE FIRST ON FRIDAY NIGHT http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet QUESTION OF THE WEEK Prizes donated by Discount Comic Book Service at www.dcbservice.com where you can order most DC, Marvel, Image, and Dark Horse comics, statues and retail products for 35% off. +Submit your own trivia and win the CHEEZY PRIZE(tm) if you can stump+ +the readers! You MUST submit the correct answer with your question.+ LAST ISSUE'S QUESTION OF THE WEEK: What was the back-up feature for the first SUPERGIRL comic book series? Zatanna was the answer and the winner is Paul Mounts who wins the prize from our sponsor! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++ THIS WEEK'S TRIVIA QUESTION: Famous first words of which comic book character? "A few seconds more, and we'll know whether we have succeeded or not!" IMPORTANT RULES NOTICE Email your guess to ComicBkNet@aol.com or just REPLY to the message if you read the Emag in your mail. DO NOT quote the entire message! You MUST allow mail from ComicBkNet@aol.com to be notified if you win. The first correct answer to reach the editor wins the CHEEZY PRIZE(tm). The editor will be the sole judge as to which guess arrived first! Messages with more than one guess will be disqualified. Winners will forfeit their prize if the Email notification is not accepted from ComicBkNet@aol.com LIMIT: ONLY ONE PRIZE every 4 weeks PER PERSON! ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [4] Network Buzz News, gossip and rumors from around the industry Spider-Man Caught in Legal Web NEW YORK (AP) - The owners of several Times Square buildings have filed a lawsuit against the makers of the upcoming ``Spider-Man'' movie for digitally altering a sign appearing in the motion picture. In a lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court, the owners of 2 Times Square allege that Columbia Pictures digitally replaced a Samsung advertisement on the side of the building with one for USA Today. The sign appears three times in the film, according to court papers. Samsung is a competitor of Sony, which owns Columbia Pictures. ``We think it's inappropriate to substitute your own image for the one that exists,'' Anthony Costantini, a lawyer for building owners Sherwood 48 Associates, told the Daily News in Thursday's editions. Heidi Henderson, a spokeswoman for USA Today, said the paper did not pay to have its logo appear in the movie; she said the filmmakers simply picked the newspaper's logo to place on the building. A call to Sony was not immediately returned Thursday. The Samsung advertisement also was changed in some television commercials promoting the movie with an ad for a wireless telephone company. The movie, starring Tobey Maguire as the Marvel Comics superhero, is scheduled to be released May 3. +++++ Here is the official news release for Free Comic Book Day: April 12, 2002 THE NATION'S COMIC BOOK PUBLISHERS AND RETAILERS UNITE TO CELEBRATE AN AMERICAN INSTITUTION WITH FREE COMIC BOOK DAY Popular Titles From Dark Horse Comics, DC Comics, Image Comics, Marvel Comics and Others To Be Given Away At Comic Book Stores Throughout the United States & Canada Timed with the Highly-Anticipated Spider-Man Movie, Free Comic Book Day Takes Place May 4th NEW YORK -- In the wake of one of this summer's biggest blockbuster movies -- Spider-Man -- the comic book industry's leading publishers have united with over 2,000 comic book shops to present an unprecedented event -- Free Comic Book Day. This historic occasion will both celebrate and raise awareness of this American-born art-form, which has been thrust into the public spotlight thanks to the recent influx of movies and other media inspired by comic books. A free copy of the industry's most popular titles -- from publishers such as Dark Horse Comics, DC Comics, Image Comics, Marvel Comics and others -- will be available to all people who enter comic book specialty shops on May 4. A way to salute the medium, unite the highly-competitive industry, and invite new readers to visit their local comics shops, the world- wide give-away will occur just one day after Sony's North American release of Spider-Man starring Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst, and less the two weeks before the premiere of Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, which also has comic book connections. Get Caught Reading, the nationwide literacy campaign supported by the Association of American Publishers and the Magazine Publishers of America, has announced its support for Free Comic Book Day. "It's not often that companies in any industry get together to promote their products, and for that reason, Free Comic Book Day represents a proud 'first' for comics in more ways than one," said Dark Horse Publisher, Mike Richardson. "We're working alongside our friends from other companies, giving away an amazing product, and promoting Star Wars: Episode II - our biggest book of the year. It's win-win in all directions." "Comics present a unique way to involve a diverse audience of readers," said Bob Wayne, Vice President – Sales & Marketing for DC Comics. "Through this groundbreaking promotional effort, more people will be introduced to the joys of reading – and shopping for – comics." "Comics have come of age as a medium of creative expression. Regardless of your age, background or tastes we have a book for you. Please join us on May 4 and see what you're missing," added Jim Valentino, VP- Publisher, Image Comics, Inc. "It has been said that there have been three unique art-forms to come out of America -- 'jazz, musicals and comic books' -- it's about time we all celebrate the latter," said Joe Quesada Marvel Comics Editor-in- Chief. "The success of comic-based movies has proven the popularity of these characters and has given the industry the perfect forum to re- introduce America to this amazing medium." As part of the promotion Marvel Comics will publish a free issue of its top-selling Ultimate Spider-Man, DC will offer the first issue of Justice League Adventures (based on the top-rated Cartoon Network series), Dark Horse will contribute a brand new story that ties into the upcoming Star Wars: Episode II-Attack of the Clones, and Image will publish the origin of Lara Croft, Tomb Raider, star of video games and movies. In addition, dozens of other comic book publishers will be contributing free titles, covering the entire spectrum of genres and styles, from classic children's humor like Archie to sophisticated sci-fi action like The Matrix. Nearly 2 million comics will be available for give-away during this single day event. Free Comic Book Day will be supported by an extensive online initiative, point-of-sale posters, and a massive PR and advertising campaign. The official website for the event is www.FreeComicBookDay.com, which contains features on the history of comic books in America, a complete list of available free titles, and a search function to help readers find a participating store near them. "Unlike the large chain stores that dominate most types of retailing, comic book shops are independently owned and operated by individuals in their communities," said Roger Fletcher, Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Diamond Comic Distributors, the national distributor that is helping to coordinate the effort. "As a result, each store is as individual as its owner, adding to the incredible diversity in the comic book field. Readers of all ages will be delighted by the broad range of entertaining and artful reading material available at their local comic book store." "The secret is out," concluded Joe Field, owner of Flying Colors Comics in Concord, California and the originator of the Free Comic Book Day promotion. "Since other media rely on comics for many of their brightest ideas, we know the time is right to invite the world to check out the amazing source material." "There once was a time when some people would frown upon reading comic books," said Association of American Publishers President & CEO Pat Schroeder. "But as we've come to understand the importance of literacy in social advancement and intellectual development, it has become obvious that reading of any kind is productive and should be encouraged." "Comic books are as intelligent, compelling, and demanding as any other form of storytelling," Schroeder added, "and they are a worthy addition to any parent, teacher, or other adult's arsenal of reading tools. We're happy to join with Free Comic Book Day to promote our common goal of getting more people to read." For more information, go to the website at http://www.freecomicbookday.com or e-mail: info@freecomicbookday.com +++++ CBLDFNews protecting First Amendment rights in the comics community The Online Newsletter of The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Vol. 1, # 45 – April 12, 2002 - www.CBLDF.org NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR In March strides were taken towards making 2002 a great year for the CBLDF. Our convention crews sent in strong results from Chicago, Texas, and Kansas City; the office experienced a change in directorship and location; and is now aggressively laying the groundwork for a season of extremely cool premiums. March brought in nearly $3,000 in convention donations, which bodes well for the Fund as we enter the heavy con season. Steve Harold and crew brought in over $600 at Chicago ComicFest at the start of the month. Planet Comicon in Kansas City brought in over $1,500 in two days thanks to the efforts of Board Member Friendly Frank Mangiaracina and his Missouri based crew. Neil Gaiman was also on con duty for the Fund that weekend, speaking and signing at AggieCon on the Texas A&M Campus. Gaiman had nothing but praise for our Texas crew who raked in over $800 at this lively student-run show. A big thank you goes out to the hundreds of generous members and donors who are keeping the Fund strong with their contributions and to our outstanding volunteers who keep our flag flying across the convention trail. http://www.motorcityconventions.com/chicago_comic_fest/ http://www.planetcomicon.com http://www.friendlyfranks.com http://www.neilgaiman.com http://aggiecon.tamu.edu/ Right now the 2002 Membership renewals are starting to rush in. If you haven't renewed your membership, or if you'd like to join the Fund's fight for free expression, there's never been a better time. There's a new issue of Busted! coming your way later this month with the inside scoop on Kieron Dwyer's struggle with Starbucks, an update on the Trouble in Texas, and lots of CBLDF news. The next issue comes out in July and will then continue to ship on a quarterly basis. A subscription to Busted! comes with your tax- deductible membership and keeps you current on breaking developments from the First Amendment's front lines. If you're not already getting Busted!, isn't it time you sign up? http://www.cbldf.org/membership.shtml Later this month we're releasing Potlatch, the long awaited benefit anthology, and announcing some very cool premiums that will be coming out this summer. Keep your eyes on cbldf.org for more details soon. http://www.potlatchcomics.org That's not all, but that's all there's time for now, because we're off to Georgia for Atlanta ComiCon where we'll be raffling off some cool stuff and making some fun announcements. So stop by, say hi, and get the latest CBLDF scoop! http://www.atlantacomicon.com Charles Brownstein, Executive Director ---------------------------AUCTION---------------------------- A Super Offering, by George! The CBLDF is offering up a stunning piece of George Perez art and we're giving you a first shot at it. All proceeds from the piece will benefit the CBLDF. Here's the specs: Wraparound cover to The Perez Archives Drawn & inked by George Perez Size- 17x11 (art extends right to the edges of the paper) The scans are here: http://www.illustrationmen.com/perez.html This is the only place where you'll see Perez capture every major superhero on one page. Created exclusively for the cover of "The Perez Archives," Andy Mangels' thorough examination of Perez's career, this key piece features head shots of all the major Marvel & DC characters including Superman, Wolverine, Spider-Man, Batman, Hulk, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Thor, Captain America, Silver Surfer, and more. Over 100 characters drawn by one of the most important superhero artists of all time! This is an incredible piece of art donated to benefit an important cause. Show your support and take a bid on this once in a lifetime offering! Offers will be accepted from Friday, April 12 until Wednesday, April 17. We are looking to raise a good amount of money for the Fund from the sale of this piece, so we ask for your best offers. We have an amount we'd like to receive for the piece and are extending the opportunity to make your BEST OFFER before we put the piece up for auction. If we don't reach our target by Wednesday, we'll be putting the piece on the block. Sorry, but in the interest of fairness, we won't divulge anyone else's offers or the price we'd like to get. Please email your BEST OFFER by Wednesday, April 17. The CBLDF is non-profit organization dedicated to defending the First Amendment rights of the comic book community. A portion of your donation may be deductible, so be sure to check with your tax advisor if you make the lucky offer. Please email your OFFERS to John Lind at: art@cbldf.org If you would like to contact the CBLDF, feel free to email the Executive Director, Charles Brownstein at director@cbldf.org, but please do not email your offers on this piece to that address. Show your support and take home an historic work of comic art! ---------------------------UPCOMING SHOWS---------------------------- CBLDF Storms Atlanta ComiCon! This weekend the CBLDF will be at the Atlanta ComiCon, one of the fastest growing shows in the region. Come by and get the latest scoop on all the CBLDF's developments, take your chances in our "Tough Luck" raffle, and come through our Saturday Night Members Reception. In addition to the CBLDF, the Atlanta ComiCon is hosting some of comics edgiest creators including Sam Kieth, Joseph Michael Linsner, Mike Mignola, Paul Jenkins, Mark Waid, Team Red Star, Devil's Due, and Top Shelf Productions. There'll be a full dealers' room, gaming, videos, and lots of fun. Come down and be a part of it. http://www.AtlantaComicon.com ---------------------------MEMBERSHIP---------------------------- Whether you're ready to renew or signing up to help the Fund for the first time, the new 2001 CBLDF Member card, featuring a design by Randy Dahlk, shows your support for First Amendment rights. Join Today! http://www.cbldf.org/membership.shtml ++++++++++++++++++++++++++ADMINISTRIVIA+++++++++++++++++++++++++ CBLDFNews Vol. 1, #5 April 12, 2002 The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization dedicated to the preservation of First Amendment rights for all members of the comics community. --> To subscribe yourself or to tell a friiend to subscribe, send a message to: CBLDFNews-subscribe@yahoogroups.com --> Visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CBBLDFNews for back issues or to administer your subscription. --> Send correspondence directly to the CBBLDF: PO Box 693, Northampton, MA 01061-0693 800-99-CBLDF director@cbldf.org --> Staff: Charles Brownstein, Executive Director R. Grover, Assistant Director Eric Griffith, CBLDF.org Webmaster +++++ TidalWave Moves to Avatar Avatar Press and TidalWave Studios have announced that the successful line which made a high profile debut at Image with 10th Muse has made the move to Avatar Press. The deal is set up to give TidalWave a separate imprint within Avatar. The full color TidalWave line will launch at Avatar in July with 10th Muse by Marv Wolfman and Roger Cruz and Black Tide by Debbie Bishop and Mike S. Miller (JLA, Adventures of Superman). Cover artists on the books will include Chris Bachalo and Andy Park. "TidalWave is representative of the best of the new breed of studio that has emerged in the past couple of years," says Avatar Press editor in chief William A. Christensen. "Like some of the others that have come up in and around Image in recent times, such as Dreamwave and Devil's Due, Tidalwave is a well-organized, high-quality, focused line capable of bringing in new readers. In fact, I think they helped kick off the trend when 10th Muse debuted at #6 on the Diamond charts two years ago. The TidalWave line makes an excellent compliment to ours, and this addition to Avatar will be of benefit to both companies, and most importantly, to the comics themselves." We are anticipating great things from this new partnership with Avatar," adds TidalWave president Darren Davis. "In the last couple of years they established themselves as an organization on the fast track to commercial and artistic success. We fully expect to add to this impressive track record." "Our intention is to not only maintain the high production value of each title, but to expand the TidalWave universe with new ventures," Davis adds. "Every book carrying the TidalWave/Avatar logo will uphold a high standard that offers our fans and all readers of comic books a quality purchase." "What I find particularly appealing about the move to Avatar is not only do I keep all of the TidalWave creative teams together, but we are able to experiment a bit more freely with styles," says Davis. "As has been my goal since day one, TidalWave books are driven by cutting edge artwork and engaging storylines. That promise of quality shall continue." All the titles currently produced by TidalWave will continue with the same quality and without any major change to the publication schedule, according to Davis. In its move to Avatar, 10th Muse will launch with a new series in July while also continuing developed storylines. The same is true for the other established TidalWave title, Black Tide. Davis plans to expand his range of titles, including spinoffs of some of the more popular characters such as ISIS, Atlas, and Orion the Hunter. The 6 titles that are scheduled to date include: 10th MUSE - Writer: Darren G. Davis, Pencils: Roger Cruz ATLAS - Writer: Darren G. Davis, Pencils: Mark Brooks BLACK TIDE - Writer: Debbie Bishop. Pencils: Mike S. Miller LEGEND OF ISIS - Writer: TBD, Pencils: RV Valdez THE ODYSSEY - Writer: Various Pencils: Norm Breyfogle, Craig Rousseau ZAK RAVEN, ESQ. - Writer: Darren G. Davis, Pencils: Renato Arlem TidalWave Studios burst on the comic scene in November of 2000 with the debut of 10th Muse. Ranked by Wizard as one of the highest debuts from an independent producer, the book quickly found a wide audience. Based within Greek mythology and driven by the Silver Age super hero sensibilities, 10th Muse paired some of the top artists with comic legend Marv Wolfman. The title is the cornerstone franchise of the TidalWave universe. Avatar Press is a comic book publisher which has carved a niche for itself as a company that pushes the boundaries between mainstream and independent by working with creators such as Warren Ellis, Garth Ennis, Alan Moore, Steven Grant, Billy Tucci, and Tim Vigil. The company has published over 300 comic books since 1997. The TidalWave imprint debuts at Avatar in July with full color releases 10th Muse #1, Black Tide #1, and the TidalWave Sampler. For more information contact william@avatarpress.net or see www.avatarpress.com. +++++ THQ Partners With Marvel Enterprises for Exclusive, Multi-Property Publishing Agreement CALABASAS HILLS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 8, 2002-- Properties Include "Captain America," "The Punisher" and "Nick Fury"; Companies Also Teaming Up On All-New Comic Property -- "The Call" THQ Inc. (Nasdaq:THQI) and Marvel Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE:MVL) today announced a worldwide agreement naming THQ exclusive interactive game licensee of some of Marvel's hottest comic and entertainment properties including "Captain America," "The Punisher," and "Nick Fury." The all-inclusive relationship grants THQ rights to all classic, TV and film versions of each of the properties for every viable game system including those manufactured by Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft, as well as PC through 2007. The two companies also announced they will collaborate on the upcoming comic series, "The Call." Based on the adventures of real-life heroes in New York City, "The Call" may feature many of the most popular characters in the Marvel Universe such as "Spider-Man" and the "X-Men." "The Call" is scheduled to make its comic debut in fall of 2003 followed by an interactive debut in spring of 2004. "Working with Marvel not only on rich properties like 'The Punisher' but in jointly creating a brand-new property like 'The Call' is a huge win for THQ as we continue to execute on our strategy of bringing the best gaming content to market," stated Germaine Gioia, vice president, licensing, THQ. "THQ looks forward to tapping into the essence of these characters from their comic book roots and creating true digital experiences that reflect Marvel's future plans for the franchises." "Marvel is looking forward to a true partnership," said Bill Jemas, President and COO, Marvel Enterprises, Inc. "THQ's top developers will work closely with Marvel's best creators to produce the most exciting games on the market. We are especially excited about jointly developing 'The Call' -- an all-new property about real-world heroism." Jemas added, "The interactive category has become a cornerstone of property development, and we feel very fortunate to be working with a company that knows how to build a property and bring it to the mass audience." "This deal has come together during an especially exciting time for these Marvel brands," stated Russ Brown, Executive Vice President, Marvel Enterprises, Inc. "Rolling Stone just declared 'Nick Fury' the 'certified cool' comic book of 2001, 'The Punisher' has been outselling 'Batman' ever since its 2000 re-launch and, based on initial orders from comic shops, 'Captain America' will be the top-selling comic in America this May -- right in the middle of the 'Spider-Man' movie hype." The first game under the new agreement is "The Punisher" (working title) scheduled for release holiday 2003. For more information about other THQ initiatives and future product releases, visit www.thq.com. +++++ Hey, True Believer! Like Quicksilver after three cups of coffee, things move fast here in The House! Take the free, five-page inserts that we're delivering each and every week in May, for example. Since we first announced this pulse-pounding project, details have changed... and you deserve to hear the latest, right? First, for the first three weeks of the month, half of our mighty mags will contain the three-part "Spider-Man and Jay Leno in: One Night Only" story by writer Ron Zimmerman (SPIDER-MAN'S TANGLED WEB #13) and artist Greg Capullo (Spawn). And, yes, as the title suggests, The Tonight Show's Jay Leno actually stars along with the world-famous web-slinger in this all-new adventure! After that, for the last two weeks of the month, half of our books will contain the first two chapters of "Spider-Man: You Can Call Me Al", by Zimmerman and penciler Al Rio -- which leads directly into June's SPIDER-MAN: GET KRAVEN miniseries! Second, I can now reveal that -- for those same five weeks -- the other half of our crazy comics will contain the all-new, five-part lead-in to THE CALL, by scribe Chuck Austen (U.S. WAR MACHINE) and artist David Finch! And, as you might have guessed, this story leads into the upcoming much buzzed-about THE CALL OF DUTY: THE BROTHERHOOD miniseries! Finally, here's the updated list of which title gets which insert: I. ON SALE MAY 1ST (order cut-off April 11th) "Spider-Man & Jay Leno: One Night Only" part 1 DEADLINE #2 SPIDER-GIRL #47 THOR #49 ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #22 "The Call" part 1 ALIAS #9 CITIZEN V #4 EXILES #13 FANTASTIC FOUR #55 UNCANNY X-MEN #406 II. ON SALE MAY 8TH (order cut-off April 18th) "Spider-Man & Jay Leno: One Night Only" part 2 BLACK PANTHER #44 CABLE #105 IRON MAN #55 MORLOCKS #2 SPIDER-MAN: BLUE #1 "The Call" part 2 CAPTAIN AMERICA #2 MARVEL KNIGHTS: DOUBLE SHOT #2 MARVEL MANGAVERSE #2 THE ORDER #4 X-TREME X-MEN #13 III. ON SALE MAY 15TH (order cut-off April 25th) "Spider-Man & Jay Leno: One Night Only" part 3 DAREDEVIL #33 MUTIES #4 NEW X-MEN #126 PETER PARKER: SPIDER-MAN #44 SPIDER-MAN: QUALITY OF LIFE #1 ULTIMATE X-MEN #18 "The Call" part 3 BLACK WIDOW: PALE LITTLE SPIDER #2 INCREDIBLE HULK #40 PUNISHER #12 TASKMASTER #4 THUNDERBOLTS #64 ULTIMATE MARVEL TEAM-UP #16 IV. ON SALE MAY 22nd (order cut-off May 2nd) "Spider-Man: You Can Call Me Al" part 1 AVENGERS ICONS: TIGRA #3 CAPTAIN MARVEL #32 DEADPOOL #67 X-FACTOR #2 "The Call" part 4 ELEKTRA #10 THE HOOD #1 MARVEL KNIGHTS #3 MUTANT X: FUTURE SHOCK #1 WOLVERINE/HULK #4 V. ON SALE MAY 27th (order cut-off May 7th) "Spider-Man: You Can Call Me Al" part 2 AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #41 PARADISE X: XEN SPIDER-MAN'S TANGLED WEB #14 THE ULTIMATES #5 WOLVERINE #176 X-FORCE #128 X-MEN UNLIMITED #36 "The Call" part 5 AVENGERS #54 BLADE #3 CAGE #3 HOWARD THE DUCK #5 X-MEN: EVOLUTION #7 ***** ALIAS, X-FORCE AND IRON MAN JOIN BLOW, NYPD BLUE AND THE WEST WING AS NOMINEES FOR THE 6TH ANNUAL PRISM AWARDS! Marvel Comics Stands Alongside CNN, NBC and Warner Brothers On Entertainment Industry Ballot! Hey, True Believer! The gang in the Bullpen has just learned that the Entertainment Industries Council, Inc. has announced the nominations for the 6th Annual PRISM Awards -- and for the third year in a row, mighty Marvel is up for the coveted Crystal Commendation! The 6th Annual PRISM Awards, which is presented in partnership with The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse/National Institutes of Health, is the entertainment industry's annual awards honoring the accurate depiction of drug, alcohol and tobacco use and addiction in movies, television, video music, interactive and comic book entertainment. Fifty-six nominees were selected from among a total of 236 submissions. For "Comic Book Issue or Multi-Issue Storyline," the nominees -- which are all Marvel titles -- include ALIAS #1, IRON MAN (vol. 1) #39 - #40, and X-FORCE #116 - #120. Nominees from other categories include Blow by New Line Cinema, The West Wing by Warner Brothers, NYPD Blue by ABC, Dateline by NBC and CNN Presents. The awards will be presented on May 9th, 2002 at CBS Television City and the telecast will be distributed throughout the United States by Tribune Entertainment. The Entertainment Industries Council, Inc. is a non-profit organization founded in 1983 by the entertainment industry to lead the industry in bringing its power and influence to bear on health and social issues. You can learn more information about the company and the PRISM Awards at www.eiconline.org and www.prismawards.com. And you can learn more about ALIAS, IRON MAN and X-FORCE at www.marvel.com. Hey, True Believer! The gang in the Bullpen has just learned that they've won three key 2001 Diamond Gem Awards! The direct market retailing community gave the nod to mighty Marvel for the following: COMIC BOOK PUBLISHER OF THE YEAR: MARVEL COMICS BEST COMIC BOOK OF THE YEAR (UNDER $3.00): AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #36 BEST REPRINT TRADE PAPERBACK OR HARDCOVER OF THE YEAR: ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN VOL. 1 "I'm proud to be working with an editorial group and creative teams that make my job look easy, " said Marvel Editor In Chief Joe Quesada. "These awards are well earned and belong to them." "Thanks to outstanding work by our creative and editorial teams, Marvel -- led by Joe Quesada and Bill Jemas -- waas the only major comics company to post positive growth in 2001," said Marvel Manager of Marketing Communications Bill Rosemann. "It's great to see the retailing community recognize this fact with a vote for The House! And how cool is it to see Spidey once again at the top of the mountain? As always, we thank our retailing friends for their continued support. And everyone should stay tuned for more fun surprises coming in 2002!" READERS & RETAILERS VOTE MARVEL #1 IN FEB. & MARCH! The House Grabs True Award: The Support Of The Readers! While the annual comic book awards are appreciated, there's one thing that the gang in the Bullpen cares about even more: the support of real, live comic book readers! See, what really matters in the end is the month-in and month-out loyalty of you, the people that actually plunk down your hard-earned cash for our particular brand of four-color entertainment. And the latest issue of Comics & Games Retailer -- the independently published magazine for the "Business Management for the Comics and Gaming Industry" -- says that you voted Marvel #1... and for that we're truly grateful. First, C&GR analyzed the "Actual Distributor Sales To Retailers," which calculates the dollar market share in the Direct Market, including reorders, excludes unshipped product, and includes trade paperbacks, graphic novels and magazines. And, for the month of February, 2002, when all is said and done, The House is #1 with 36% of sales, vs. 28% by our nearest competitor. Gazing at February's bookshelves, C&GR also revealed that Marvel not only grabbed the top three spots, but also published 6 of the Top 10 selling trade paperbacks! ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN vol. 1, ESSENTIAL SPIDER-MAN vol. 1, ESSENTIAL DOCTOR STRANGE, ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN vol. 2, ESSENTIAL ANT-MAN and DAREDEVIL VISIONARIES: FRANK MILLER vol. 3 all putt up large numbers. Hey, who would have guessed that Ant-Man would score so big? Looking at March, C&GR says that Marvel was once again #1 across the board. And that's in Unit Sales of Comics (42% to the nearest competitor's 30%), Dollar Sales Of Comics (40% to the nearest competitor's 28%) and Dollar Sales of Comics/TPBs (38% to the nearest competitor's 29%)... and that's despite the fact that we published 49 titles, while the uptown group published 65. C&GR also announced the Top 5 selling comics were all Marvel books: NEW X-MEN #124, THE ULTIMATES #3, ULTIMATE X-MEN #16, UNCANNY X-MEN #404 and AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #41. So with readers voting with their wallets, what do the retailers -- the hard-working people that help grow the industry everyday -- have to say about activity in their stores? Are readers in your shop buying the same thing in stores across the country? Let's let them speak for themselves... John Tinkess of Another Dimension (Calgery, Alberta, Canada): "INCREDIBLE HULK is selling very well, (while) AMAZING SPIDER-MAN continues to be our #1 seller by a wider margin every issue... (and) EXILES seems to be the one book that was overlooked during the X-relaunches last year, but over the past few months sales have grown steadily." Fred Brown of Dreams Alive (McCall, Idaho): "Marvel's Ultimate titles are still selling well, as is PUNISHER." Darrell Minty of Warp 1 Comics & Games (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada): "More people are picking up Spider-Man titles, as the movie premiere looms closer and excitement is definitely building. THE ULTIMATES is off to a quick, successful start, as well." R. Soliz of Cosmic Slop Comics & Video (Antioch, California): "Movin' up are THOR, IRON MAN, AVENGERS and CAPTAIN AMERICA -- core titles that always re-claim an audience, time and time again!" Craig Howrie of Warp 2 Comics (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada): "SPIDER-GIRL is going through a resurgence." Colonel Dave of Uncle Sven's Comic Shoppe (St. Paul, Minnesota): "Sales of copies of Marvel's ESSENTIAL DR. STRANGE were mystical this month. Their spell cast an aura on DR. STRANGE back issues -- all praise the Ancient One!" Aaron O'Dell of Vintage Stock II (Tulsa, Oklahoma): "INCREDIBLE HULK is gaining steam. Bruce Jones' new take on the classic hero has people's attention.... (while) all of the X-titles remain strong." William Insignares of Demolitioncomics.com (Tampa, Florida): "HOWARD THE DUCK, the new MAX series, and FURY are movin' on up -- readers are really linking the new Marvel MAX line." And what retailer quote makes us smile even more? That would be the one by John Cook or DNA Comics (Lake Jackson, Texas), who says: "Every company is really pulling out the stops. We are seeing a lot of new customers who say they haven't bought a comic book in 8 to 10 years." So there you have it! As always, everyone at The House thanks you for voting Marvel #1! We're working hard every day to win and maintain your support! Not to bury you in Deadline stories, but Diamond Comics Distributors just told me that Deadline #1, as of today, is sold out. Guy Davis and I are both honored and greatly appreciative of the reception that the comics community has given Deadline. The list of positive online reviews has blown us away -- and the icing on the cake has been all of the nice e-mails and phone calls that we've received from retailers, readers, and creators. This truly is one of the greatest industries on the planet! 'Nuff Said! Bill Rosemann Marketing Communications Manager Marvel Comics +++++ ATLAS GOES TO ATLANTA COMICCON "Atlas" the new comicbook from TidalWave Studios published by Avatar Press will be donning the convention badges to the Atlanta Comic con. The Convention is April 13-14. Penciler Mark Brooks and inker Clayton Brown will be at the Atlanta Comic convention promoting the launch of the title due out in stores in August 2002. The basis for "Atlas" is: After commanding the Titans in their war against the Olympians, Atlas was forced to hold up the heavens on his shoulders. A tragic story of a lone God who fights boredom on Mount Olympus. Monitoring the earth from above, ATLAS watches Earth change and the emergence of super powered beings donning capes and tights. Growing restless and craving adventure, ATLAS decides to take the world in his hands and becomes one of the Earth's newest heroes. "Atlas" is written and created by Darren G. Davis, Penciled by Mark Brook, inked by Clayton Brown and colored by Blond. Atlas was featured in a solo backup story in "10th Muse" issues 7-9. Atlas #1 in August will feature Alternate covers by: Talent Caldwell, Roger Cruz & Christian Gossett. TidalWave has produced such titles as: 10th Muse, Black Tide, Legend of ISIS and the Dollz For more info please contact Darren G. Davis at TidalWave Studios (email: tidalwavestudios@aol.com). http://atlantacomicon.com or tidalwavestudios.com +++++ CROSSGEN NOMINATED FOR FIVE 2002 EISNER AWARDS Creative Team On Hit Series RUSE Leads The Way TAMPA, FL., April 11, 2002 - The nominees for the 2002 Eisner Awards were recently announced and CrossGen Comics and its staffers have been named for five. Collecting all five of the nominations is CrossGen's hit series Ruse and its creative team. Nominations were received in the following categories: Best Continuing Series - Ruse by Mark Waid, Butch Guice, and Michael Perkins Best New Series - Ruse by Mark Waid, Butch Guice, and Michael Perkins Best Writer - Mark Waid, Ruse Best Penciler/Inker or Penciler/Inker Team - Butch Guice, Ruse Best Coloring - Laura DePuy, Ruse "Try as we might, we just couldn't find a way to stuff the ballot box this time," joked CrossGen Publisher and CEO Mark Alessi. "We even went so far as to hire a private investigator, but his search also came up short. It seems they hide the judges away in some secret location where no one can get to them. Seriously though, with all the awards hoopla that's been swirling this industry the past few weeks, we are honored that the Eisner panel of judges has recognized our talented staff and we are proud to be included on the same ballot with such distinguished company. It just proves once again that quality does indeed get rewarded." Familiarly known as "the Eisners," the annual Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards are considered the "Oscars" of the comics industry and recognize the finest stories, publications, and creators in the comic book medium. The awards were named for Will Eisner, the writer/artist credited with creating the graphic storytelling format of the graphic novel, which showed the world that comics were more than just "funny books" that told only superhero stories. A panel of five judges considers the items submitted to the Eisner Awards and then select the final items to appear on the Eisner Awards ballot. CROSSGEN, ENORBUS SIGN AGREEMENT FOR WIRELESS GAMES China's Largest Wireless Entertainment Company Agrees to Develop CrossGen's Properties for Icons and Games in China and Around the World TAMPA, FL., April 8, 2002 - CrossGeneration Comics and Enorbus Technologies, the largest wireless entertainment company in China, have signed an agreement that will see CrossGen's properties exclusively developed by Enorbus for the worldwide wireless entertainment marketplace, including Enorbus' home turf in the Asian Pacific rim, it was announced today. The agreement includes the development, marketing and distribution of icons, characters and games usable on current and next generation wireless communication products available around the world. The first product resulting from this agreement should make it to market by Q4 2002. Enorbus' products are already available to more than 150 million users in Asia on operators such as China Mobile, China Unicom, KDDI and Chunghwa Telecom. Enorbus also has existing relationships with leading technology companies, including Ericsson, Intel, Motorola, Nokia, Packet Video and Siemens. "Our two companies are great companions and they compliment each other wonderfully," said Enorbus Technologies CEO, Norbert Chang, "With their dedication to fantastic art, and enthralling storylines, CrossGen has proven themselves to be leaders in worldwide comic publication, and we feel that our revolutionary technology-based background is the perfect means with which to introduce the many aspects of their product to mobile phone users throughout the world." Comic book fan and Enorbus COO, Ipang Lin commented, "Not only do we in the office love the CrossGen books, but their publications already have a huge fan base all over the world. We felt that readers in China also deserved such fantastic books and characters." CrossGen CEO and Publisher Mark Alessi said the agreement is only one part of CrossGen's overall worldwide expansion plans. "Enorbus is a stellar organization with a lot of drive and determination, and Norbert showed a lot of fortitude and vision in making the trip to see our studio and then pressing onward with our current agreement," Alessi said. "Enorbus will be one of the anchors in our worldwide expansion, which thus far, has seen CrossGen's comics licensed and sold in more than 20 countries, and soon, see development in the Far East. More than that, working with Enorbus is going to be a lot of fun." About Enorbus Enorbus Technologies provides entertainment content, icons, characters and games for the worldwide wireless marketplace, using an extensive portfolio of products and solutions that covers all existing and emerging technologies including SMS, WAP, J2ME, Brew, Mpeg4, and MMS. In addition to being the largest wireless entertainment company in China, Enorbus has made a name for itself by launching the most innovative and freshest creations throughout the world. Enorbus wireless entertainment products are available to more than 150 million users in Asia on operators such as China Mobile, China Unicom, KDDI and Chunghwa Telecom. Dominating the Chinese market, Enorbus has been repeatedly recognized with industry-based awards and honors -- being named best mobile applications by Wireless Asia in both the Wireless Web and J2ME categories. Consumers throughout China voted Enorbus games as the "user's choice" in recent surveys conducted by Ericsson. Unparalleled milestones include many 'Firsts' for the Chinese and greater Asian markets, exemplifying the Enorbus dedication to quality and innovation. Cooperating with leading technology companies like Ericsson, Intel, Motorola, Nokia, Packet Video, and Siemens, Enorbus has been recognized as a leader in developing wireless entertainment products effectively integrating rich content with cutting edge wireless technologies. CROSSGEN WINS DIAMOND GEM AWARD FOR SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR Retailers Choose CrossGen To Receive Annual Award TAMPA, FL., April 10, 2002 - For the second consecutive year, CrossGen Comics has been voted Comic Publisher of the Year in the under 5% Market Share category by retailers using Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. CrossGen won the same award in its first year of publishing in 2000 and has repeated as the winner for 2001. These annual awards are presented to publishers based on votes accumulated by Diamond from their more than 4000 retail accounts. CrossGen received the only award for which it was nominated. "We are very grateful to the retailing community for bestowing us this honor once again," said CrossGen Publisher and CEO Mark Alessi. "We know who we work for in this business and every day we strive a little harder to make sure that our industry increases in health. It's nice to know our efforts are appreciated and rewarded." +++++ ARTIST OF DC, MARVEL, AND STAR TREK JOINS CLAYPOOL! Soulsearchers and Company Reunites Gordon Purcell and Peter David! GORDON PURCELL's drawn famous characters ranging from Kirk and Spock to Mulder and Scully, as well as DC Comics' The Flash, Marvel's Wonder Man, and television's Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Now, he's penciling PETER DAVID's super-hero satire SOULSEARCHERS AND COMPANY for Claypool Comics! Soulsearchers follows a team of inept supernatural investigators in tales that often include parody versions of pop icons such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Titanic. Purcell's first issue is #53, in stores now. "Rules of Engagement!" tells the story of Soulsearcher (and Arabic fire demon) Baraka's attempt to orchestrate his romantic marriage proposal to the group's leader, Bridget. Unfortunately, his efforts are continually frustrated by unexpected obstacles, including a fight, a sabotaged pizza, and an undermined mime. The story is written by David with Soulsearchers editor and co-creator RICHARD HOWELL, and inked by KIM DEMULDER. The cover is by the regular and much loved art team of AMANDA CONNER and STEVE LEIALOHA. Purcell and David have worked together before, on DC Comics' Star Trek titles. Howell hired Purcell to draw Soulsearchers shortly after Purcell began drawing for Claypool's ELVIRA, MISTRESS OF THE DARK. "He asked me about Soulsearchers before I even finished the Elvira story," Purcell comments. For his part, Howell says, "Gordon's work is both solidly professional and full of personality. He loves drawing comics, and that joy shows in his work. Claypool is exactly the place for him." In addition to his work on Soulsearchers, Purcell illustrates for television advertisers--keep an eye out for a Ford ad that puts a car in a cartoony, Purcell-drawn world--and companies such as Dynamic Forces, for which he's recently done a Star Trek art print. He will appear in Claypool's booth at the Wizard World Chicago comic-book convention this July. Besides Soulsearchers and Elvira, Claypool publishes the vampire epic DEADBEATS by Howell and RICARDO VILLAGRAN. The company, which has featured famous talent from Purcell and David to PAUL DINI and KURT BUSIEK, has been called "The Publisher of Hidden Treasures." +++++ SCI FI Channel Joins Free Comic Book Day Initiative Cable Network To Promote Event On Air, Online Cable network The SCI FI Channel has joined in the nationwide Free Comic Book Event with a combination of on-air and online promotions, as well as a contest tailored to appeal to science fiction and comic book fans alike. On Saturday April 27, one week before Free Comic Book Day, SCI FI Channel will feature "Super-Hero Saturday," a day-long marathon of super-hero movies and TV shows, including airing the 153-minute DVD cut of Superman: The Movie complete with extra footage in unedited letterbox format. Interspersed between these programs will be ads promoting comic books and directing viewers to their local comic book stores on May 4 for Free Comic Book Day. On that day, anyone walking into any of more than 2,000 participating comic book stores in the U.S. and abroad will receive a comic book absolutely free. At the same time, SCI FI is also gearing up for the new seasons of its hit shows Farscape and Stargate SG-1. Comic book stores participating in Free Comic Book Day will distribute postcards promoting the new seasons, containing art by none other than comics industry legend Neal Adams. The postcards will direct fans to enter a contest at www.scifi.com that will award the original art to one lucky fan. "Our friends at The SCI FI Channel can reach a segment of the public that we can't, a segment that is predisposed to enjoy a large part of what our industry has to offer," said Diamond Marketing Communications Manager Barry Lyga. "They've developed a wonderful promotion that celebrates comics while at the same time promoting the genres and media that have brought some of the most imaginative entertainment ever into our culture." "So many wonderful science fiction concepts come from comic book stories," commented a SCI FI Channel spokeswoman. "Our industries are interlinked by a common past, and we're more than happy to reach out to the comic book world on this occasion. When we heard about Free Comic Book Day, we knew we had to be a part of it." For more information about The SCI FI Channel, point your browser to www.SCIFI.com. For more information about Free Comic Book Day (including a list of participating stores), point your browser to www.FreeComicBookDay.com. +++++ From the SPLASH PAGE of Comicon.com at: http://www.comicon.com/splash/ MARVEL PROFIT REALLY A LOSS! $4.1 MILLION 'PREFERRED STOCK' DIVIDEND BLOWS HOLE IN BOTTOM LINE! April 8: MARVEL ENTERPRISES' recent quarterly SEC filing was widely hailed as showing the company posting a profit for the first time since it reorganized coming out of the MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT bankruptcy. Now it turns out that holders of preferred stock, who received those shares as part of the bankruptcy deal, were paid $4.1 million, knocking the company's bottom line down to $710,000 loss. MARVEL ENTERPRISES' Vice Chairman, Ike Perlmutter, has the lion's share of the preferred shares. CNN is reporting: "Due to the bankruptcy, Marvel has been forced to make sizable preferred dividend payments each quarter to shareholders who acquired preferred stock in 1998. The primary owner of these shares is Isaac Perlmutter, Marvel's vice chairman and the former owner of Toy Biz. This takes a chunk out of Marvel's bottom line. The quarterly profit Marvel had in the fourth quarter turns into a $710,000 loss once you factor in the $4.1 million preferred dividend payment." Despite the revelation about the preferred stock dividend, there is no question that MARVEL ENTERPRISES is in better shape than it ever has been in its three and half year existence. CNN says: "So is Marvel a good investment now? The company is on the right track but there are still several risks. For one, Marvel's balance sheet still needs some work. The company had $181.8 million in long-term debt as of the end of 2001. That's down from $250 million at the end of 2000. But Marvel only has $22.8 million in cash. Also, there is no Wall Street coverage of the stock (and hence no earnings estimates) and very few mutual funds own the stock. The lack of estimates makes it tough to come up with a reasonable valuation for Marvel. For what it's worth, the company trades at about 1.5 times trailing sales. And there are no public companies to compare Marvel to either. DC Comics, the second largest comic book publisher, is but a small part of AOL Time Warner, which also owns this web site. Stan Lee Media, the online comic book company founded by former Marvel chairman Stan Lee, filed for bankruptcy last year and shut down. " DRAWN & QUARTERLY ISSUES ON-LINE APPEAL! CAN ON-LINE LIGHTNING STRIKE TWICE? April 8: Just days after on-line fans pulled out their credit cards and pointed, clicked and dialed their way to saving TOP SHELF, another small publisher caught up in the LPC bankruptcy has issued an appeal for customers to purchase their books and keep the company afloat. Chris Oliveros of DRAWN & QUARTERLY sent out the following press release this morning: "Shortly after its book distributor filed for Chapter 11, Drawn & Quarterly announced it will be having an online sale to "fill in the gaps" left by the anticipated shortfall in cash. The sale runs until midnight April 17th and as a special bonus, orders of at least $150. USD will receive the new Chris Ware sketchbook for free when it is published in September. D&Q's online catalogue features extensive descriptions and graphics of everything we have in print and a "shortlist" (title/author) is provided at the end of this e-mail (thanks to Jeff Mason!). D&Q's secure online ordering catalogue can be accessed by going to our home page and clicking on the "order" icon at the bottom. http://www.drawnandquarterly.com [See the HYPE SECTION for more D & Q projects in the works. - D.L.] 'COMIC WARS' RELEASE TIMED FOR 'SPIDER-MAN'! MARVEL INVESTORS TAKE DEPOSITIONS IN SUIT AGAINST PERELMAN! April 9: While MARVEL ENTERPRISES gears up for the release next month of SPIDER-MAN, hoping to bask in the positive publicity of a Hollywood blockbuster, a new book that details the sordid business history of MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT is due to hit the stands a week before the film. "Comic Wars" by CBS news reporter Dan Raviv, is being hyped as a blow- by-blow account about the acrimonious battle between Ron Perelman and Carl Icahn over the previous incarnation of the Mighty Marvel empire. NEIL TRAVIS of the NEW YORK POST is calling the book "riveting". In today's editions he said: "The book concludes that both men lost the battle, but on very different terms. It says Perelman, thanks to a junk bond deal, made $280 million out of Marvel, while company raider Icahn ended up more than $70 million out of pocket. The shareholders, of course, lost the most. Raviv quotes a Perelman operative as saying, "This is a money-making enterprise, not a church choir." But the author reveals that someone may be singing to the lawyers right now. " THE POST said: "Raviv says that a litigation trust representing former shareholders and creditors of Marvel Comics is preparing a suit against Perelman alleging "unjust entitlement." The suit is said to be at the deposition stage right now." The SPLASH first reported on this litigation in 1999, after the Shareholder Trustees threatened legal action against over 500 ex- employees, suppliers and freelancers of bankrupt MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT. +++++ From the Comics Continuum at http://www.comicscontinuum.com/: SPIDER-MAN MOVIE UPDATE Hardee's is reporting that its Spider-Man movie promotion has been an overwhelming success, with disappearing posters and other promotional items. Television spots featuring never-before-seen footage from the film plus new original scenes have garnered significant attention from Internet and trade media. Hardee's Spider-Man antenna toppers are selling out in so many locations, the company has double-ordered additional toppers to meet the demand. Meanwhile, online auction sites are swarming with collectors clamoring for the unique molded-plastic Spider-Man figures featured in the kid's meals. In addition, several Hardee's restaurants have reported the large Spider-Man cut-outs and poster displays missing, likely the victims of Spider-Man's ardent fans. Those same fans have even been offering to buy the Spider-Man promotional T-shirts off the backs of the chain's restaurant employees. "We knew that the release of the Spider-Man film would be a major event, but, frankly, we underestimated the response from fans," said Brad Haley, executive vice-president of marketing for Hardee's. "Hardee's has had some very successful promotions throughout its history, but this looks like it is going to be our most successful ever." +++++ From Newsarama at http://www.comicon.com/Newsarama/ YOUNGBLOOD: BLOODSPORT UPDATE Rob Liefeld has provided Newsarama an update on Youngblood: Bloodsport, the upcoming mini-series written The Ultimates Mark Millar_ "Youngblood: Bloodsport has officially expanded to four issues," Liefeld told Newsarama. "Originally, Mark was uncertain whether or not the story warranted four issues. We had originally talked about a three-issue mini, but shortly after finishing the first issue, Mark decided it was necessary to expand the series to a fourth issue to accommodate the scope of the story. Four 25-page issues make for a better trade paperback collection anyway. "Fans of Youngblood will be thrilled to hear that Mark and I are cramming every single Youngblood member over the past ten years into this mini-epic. We're talking Youngblood, Team Youngblood, Bloodpool and Alan Moore's Youngblood, if they appeared in Youngblood they're making an appearance, some more memorable than others of course." "I've just finished the first issue and both Rob and I are really excited about the project," added Millar, who reiterated he doesn't plan on talking about story details until right before solicitation of the first issue. "The only thing I'll say is that it's about as far from The Ultimates as you can possibly get so don't assume you know what you're getting here." Speaking of solicitation, Liefeld said he's shooting for an August on- sale date for the first issue and said the series will be distributed by Diamond. Asked if he's been tweaking his drawing style in preparation for the new series (Liefeld included a two-page preview) spread from issue #1, Liefeld said nothing that he's aware of_ "Sorry, I wish I could tell you that I'm incorporating a new approach, but maybe it's just the result of a less hectic schedule." GENE HA's 'IRON FIST' INTERLUDE Fans going through Gene Ha withdrawal waiting for the long-in-the-works ABC project Top 10: The 49ers will get a bit of a fix this July when Marvel offers a new story written, penciled and inked by Ha. One half of the fourth and final issue of the Marvel Knights: Double Shot anthology, Ha's "surprising" story stars Iron Fist and finds the martial arts master "answering a strange cry for help". "It looks absolutely beautiful and I'd love Gene to do more," said editor Stuart Moore, asked if Ha's story could lead to a mini-series in the future. "But he's pretty booked up right now … hopefully down the line." JLA'S SUMMER OBSIDIAN AGE STORYLINE If you're talking about increasing shipping frequency, Marvel is the publisher making all the noise lately. Across town however, DC has plans as well – plans centered on the DCU's primary superteam. Beginning with August's issue #69 and running through #74, JLA will ship bi-weekly, coinciding with a six-part storyline entitled "The Obsidian Age." The arc will, among other things tie up some loose ends and answer some lingering questions from last year's JLA: Our Worlds at War Issue #67 will set events in motion for the storyline, and issue #68 will serve as a full-fledged The Obsidian Age prologue when Zatanna, Faust, Tempest and other DC magicians make a startling discovery near the Atlantic Trench – the site where Atlantis once stood, but disappeared during JLA: Our Worlds at War. And the storyline's subtitle, "The Hunt for Aquaman," will probably give readers a good feeling as to which OW@W questions the team is looking to answer. "The Obsidian Age is a very epic-feeling story that really manifests a lot of the stuff I want to do with the JLA," regular series writer Joe Kelly told Newsarama. "It's got a really 'big' feeling to it that impacts not only on the JLA personally, and not only how they go about their lives and fighting battles, as well as the entire world. "It involves Atlantis and the rediscovery of Atlantis, and starts to solve some of the riddles of what happened as a result of JLA: Our Worlds at War. There's a lot of cool new characters, and we're introducing a lot of new concepts that will resonate through the DCU, such as the idea that this age of heroes we're in now that began with the Golden Age maybe isn't the first one the earth has seen." Kelly explained that he's not talking about Justice League analogues running around in pre-history, but rather unique heroes that banded together at times of crises. "I'm not looking at versions of Batman and Superman through the eons," Kelly said. "I did everything I could to stay away from making analogous heroes when I was creating the new guys. But yeah, during times of crises, other groups of heroes may have come together to help out." One of these times, presumably from Kelly's comments was during the "Obsidian Age," hence the storyline's title. To clarify the point, the "Obsidian Age" of the title does not refer to the hero/villain Obsidian, son of Alan Scott the Golden Age Green Lantern. Rather, it refers to, well, the Obsidian Age. "The Obsidian Age is a hidden age – a secret age that was never recorded in history books, or even passed along through oral history," Kelly said. "It's a time that occurred in earth's distant past that no one has any information on now. There are real reasons for why no one knows about t, and those will come forward as the story progresses. And of course, there is a nice tie-in as obsidian has long played a special role with magicians and seers who gaze into it to find out secret knowledge or see a vision." Kelly also admitted that the storyline would return a time-honored tradition to the JLA – a roster shakeup. But, Kelly stressed, the changes won't be arbitrary. "I never want to shake up the roster or introduce new characters just for the sake of doing it," Kelly said. "I want to tie them to the story as tightly as possible. With a story this big, you're going to see manifestations of the JLA that are drastically different as a direct result of the story. The same goes for this search for Aquaman element. I'm trying to play off of readers' expectations – if everyone is expecting x to happen, I want to go for y instead, and really build these characters into something unexpected." Of course, Kelly wasn't about to offer up who's staying and who's going, opting only to say that the roster shakeup will take place early in the storyline. "Some of the new members will be names that have been bandied around on boards and the lettercolumns," Kelly added. "I'm not saying who, but the choices will raise some eyebrows. There are going to be great character moments spread throughout the action, there will be a lot of characters in general." And for readers who are already feeling their hackles rising – read over the first paragraph again – The Obsidian Age is not a crossover in any way, shape or form. JLA members solo books will continue on uninterrupted during the six-part story. "I think DC felt that there have been enough crossovers in the past year," Kelly said. "We wanted an event, but not a crossover. We didn't want a fifth week event that everyone had to participate with, and I just don't like throwing those out there and making people participate in them if it's not in their plans to do so. So the result was a six-part, 'big' story that I get to tell by myself. Honestly, I'm a little intimidated by it, almost, but the reason we did it as a bi-weekly, and not as a miniseries or fifth week event was that I really wanted to sink my teeth into this story as a whole, and write every part, so it has one voice and one vision behind it. "So the goal is to keep the story tight and coherent, and I think we're doing a pretty good job so far. I think people are going to be pleased – there will be some JLA-style controversy no doubt, especially when the new team members come on, but it should all be fun." +++++ From Comics2Film at http://www.comics2film.com ASTERIX AND OBELIX: MISSION CLEOPATRA ------------------------------------- Asterix and Obelix: Mission Cleopatra is officially the most successful French-made movie in 35 years according to ICv2.com. The site reports that the movie continues to sell tickets in it's ninth week of release. Miramax is planning on releasing the film in the U.S. some time this year. They've also got the U.S. distribution rights for the precursor Asterix and Obelix Vs. Caesar. http://www.ICv2.com +++++ From Zentertainment; HTTP://WWW.ZENTERTAINMENT.COM To sign a friend up or begin receiving ZEN yourself, e-mail: subscribe@ZENtertainment.com <<- - - - - - - - - - - - - VHS & DVD - - - - - - - - - - - - ->> -----> NEW RELEASES -----> "*" - Recommended by ZEN - April 23rd - *TRANSFORMERS: COMPLETE 1st SEASON (DVD) *BATMAN & Mr. FREEZE: SUBZERO *THE BATMAN SUPERMAN MOVIE *BATMAN: TAS - THE LEGEND BEGINS *BATMAN BEYOND: RETURN OF THE JOKER - THE ORIGINAL UNCUT VERSION *JUSTICE LEAGUE *X-MEN: EVOLUTION - X-MARKS THE SPOT - April 30th - *SPIDER-MAN: THE ULTIMATE VILLAIN SHOWDOWN ASTRO BOY (VHS) <<- - - - - - - - - - - - - - MOVIES - - - - - - - - - - - - - ->> AREA 52 Optioned - According to The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, Brian Haberlin's IMAGE Comics series AREA 52 has been optioned by CASEY SILVER Productions. Damian Shannon & Mark Swift have been hired to script an adaptation of this four-issue miniseries about an alien attack at a secret government warehouse in Antarctica. -----> COMING ATTRACTIONS -----> - May 3rd - SPIDER-MAN [Sony] - July 3rd - MEN IN BLACK 2 [Sony] - July 12th - THE ROAD TO PERDITION [DreamWorks] +++++ From Beau Yarbrough's Comic Wire at: http://www.comicbookresources.com/ PLANS FOR U.S. FILM OF 'AKIRA' ANNOUNCED Katsuhiro Otomo's groundbreaking Manga series "Akira" has been hailed by many as one of the finest examples of graphic story telling. The story of a post-apocalyptic Neo-Tokyo set in 2019 is familiar to comic fans by way of the comic or the 1988 Japanese film, of which an English dubbed version was released in the United States to wide acclaim. Recently, the books were published again in the United States by Dark Horse Comics in a series of six, 300+ page trade paperbacks. But the "Akira" juggernaut doesn't stop there. According to today's Hollywood Reporter, Warner Bros' and filmmaker Stephen Norrington have teamed to created a Western adaptation of "Akira" (not Western as in Cowboys and Indians). Norrington will both write and direct the new movie with Jon Peters producing. Norrington's name should be a familiar one to comic fans as the man who directed 1998's "Blade." He'll also be directing the feature film versions of Alan Moore's "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" and Marvel Comics' "Ghost Rider," both set for a 2003 debut. No release date for this new "Akira" was mentioned. +++++ From DC Online newletter at DCcomics.com NEW FROM THE DC LIBRARY: BATMAN IN WORLD'S FINEST COMICS ARCHIVES VOLUME 1 Ever since 1954, when Batman and Superman first teamed up in WORLD'S FINEST COMICS #71, the phrase "World's Finest" has been synonymous with the duo itself. The team went on to costar in every issue of WORLD'S FINEST COMICS for over 30 years, the tales from issues #71-101 having been collected in WORLD'S FINEST COMICS ARCHIVES Volume 1 (STAR08933) and Volume 2 (STAR14679). But what about the stories that came before WORLD'S FINEST COMICS #71? DC Comics is pleased to announce the publication of BATMAN IN WORLD'S FINEST COMICS ARCHIVES Volume 1, reprinting stories from WORLD'S FAIR COMICS 1940, WORLD'S BEST COMICS #1 and WORLD'S FINEST COMICS #2-16. These classic Golden Age tales — only two of which have ever been reprinted before — are by some of the Dark Knight Detective's greatest writers and artists, including Batman creator Bob Kane. The volume also features the historic first appearance of the classic villain the Scarecrow, along with a foreword by comics historian R.C. Harvey. This volume showcases artwork by Bob Kane, Jack Burnley, Ray Burnley, Charles Paris, Fred Ray, Jerry Robinson, George Roussos, and Dick Sprang; the stories are written by Bill Finger, Joe Greene and Jack Schiff. BATMAN IN WORLD'S FINEST ARCHIVES COMICS Volume 1 is scheduled to be in stores on August 21. DC EXTENDS ARCHIVES SERIES WITH NEW VOLUMES Also coming later this year are new volumes in several DC Archives series, including: GREEN LANTERN ARCHIVES Volume 4: The Silver Age adventures of fearless test pilot Hal Jordan continue in this volume reprinting tales from GREEN LANTERN #22-29, in which the Emerald Gladiator faces such foes as the Tattooed Man, Sonar, Star Sapphire, and the Shark. Writers include John Broome and Gardner Fox; the art for these stories is by Gil Kane, Joe Giella, Frank Giacoia and Sid Greene. GREEN LANTERN ARCHIVES Volume 4 is scheduled to reach stores on June 26. ALL STAR COMICS ARCHIVES Volume 8: Reprinting ALL STAR COMICS #34-38 from 1947-1948, these stories include the villainy of Solomon Grundy, the Wizard, Per Degaton, and the Injustice Society of the World, as well as rare guest-appearances by Superman and Batman. With stories by Gardner Fox, John Broome and Robert Kanigher, and art by Irwin Hasen, Joe Kubert, Lee Elias, Carmine Infantino, Alex Toth, and others, this volume features an introduction by Roy Thomas. ALL STAR COMICS ARCHIVES Volume 8 is scheduled to reach stores on July 31. THE SPIRIT ARCHIVES Volume 8: The adventures of Will Eisner's unforgettable hero continue in this new collection reprinting stories from January 2 to June 25, 1944. The Will Eisner "World War II Portfolio" continues in this volume as well, with a selection of informational posters produced for the Army and samples of a military-oriented daily comic strip. THE SPIRIT ARCHIVES Volume 8 is scheduled to reach stores on August 14. DC HONORED WITH FIVE DIAMOND GEM AWARDS The 2001 Diamond Gem Award winners were announced in the April issue of Diamond Dialogue, with DC named in several categories. DC wishes to thank Diamond Comic Distributors and participating retailers for this honor. Star System Publisher/Manufacturer of the Year: DC Comics Toy Manufacturer of the Year: DC Direct Best Comic Book of the Year — Over $3.00: THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN #1 Original Graphic Novel of the Year: WONDER WOMAN: SPIRIT OF TRUTH Collectible Statue of the Year: THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN STATUE DC PROJECTS AMONG FINAL NOMINEES FOR 2001 BRAM STOKER AWARDS The final nominees for the 2001 Bram Stoker Awards have been announced, with the Illustrated Narrative category made up entirely of DC projects. We congratulate all those nominated and thank the members of the Horror Writers Association for making these selections. "Freezes Over" (HELLBLAZER #158-161) written by Brian Azzarello, with art by Marcelo Frusin (VERTIGO) "The First Adventures of Miss Catterina Poe" (THE DREAMING #56) written by Caitlin R. Kiernan, with art by Steve Leialoha (VERTIGO) DESPERADOES: QUIET OF THE GRAVE #1-5 written by Jeff Mariotte, with art by John Severin (Homage/WildStorm) "Quiver" (GREEN ARROW #1-10) by Kevin Smith, with art by Phil Hester and Ande Parks (DC Comics) WEIRD WESTERN TALES #1-4 by various authors (VERTIGO) DC ARTISTS NAMED IN SPECTRUM AWARDS The winners of the ninth annual Spectrum Awards for fantastic art were announced on February 22, with DC talent being honored in several categories. The winners included: Comics — Silver Award: Dave McKean — cover, THE SANDMAN PRESENTS: THE CORINTHIAN — DEATH IN VENICE #2 Dimensional — Gold Award: Tim Bruckner — CLASSIC JOKER MINI-BUST DC PROJECTS NOMINATED FOR INTERNATIONAL HORROR GUILD AWARDS The International Horror Guild has named its nominees for outstanding achievement in the field of horror/dark fantasy for 2001, including two projects from DC Comics, which are: "The First Adventures of Miss Catterina Poe" (THE DREAMING #56) written by Caitlin R. Kiernan, with art by Steve Leialoha (VERTIGO) DESPERADOES: QUIET OF THE GRAVE #1-5 written by Jeff Mariotte, with art by John Severin (Homage/WildStorm) NEWS FROM THE MAINSTREAM PRESS The April 4 edition of USA Today includes an article on upcoming TV pilot episodes including Birds of Prey. The March 22 issue of The Jewish Week includes the article "Super Hero for the Ages," about KING DAVID, including quotes from writer/artist Kyle Baker. The March 26 edition of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette includes the article "It's a Mad World of Endorsements," in which Roy Rivenburg looks at the use of Alfred E. Neuman as an advertising icon for such companies as Lands' End. NEWS FROM THE TRADE PRESS The "Comics in Your Future" column in the April 5 issue of Comics Buyer's Guide (#1481) includes a review of HUMAN TARGET: FINAL CUT, with Jeremy Shorr writing, "Matched with the clean and clear linework of [Javier] Pulido, we are presented with the pleasurable opportunity to read [Peter] Milligan at his best — a well-thought-out story with depth, characterization, plotting, choice dialogue, and tight pacing. What more do you need?" Tony Isabella gives ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #600 his top rating, calling it "a terrific comic book." The "Pick of the Week" is BATMAN #600, with Brent Frankenhoff writing, "This ongoing story arc in the Bat-titles continues to grow and shows no signs of slowing down." Also reviewed in the "Reading Room" is HAWKMAN #1, with Brett Weiss writing, "Penciller Rags Morales provides some of the best art of his career, drawing Hawkman as the bold, brash adventurer that he is." Arnold Drake, whose writing is featured in THE DOOM PATROL ARCHIVES Volume 1, is featured in this issue's "Ask Mr. Silver Age" column. The April 12 issue of Comics Buyer's Guide (#1482) includes a review of DC FIRST: THE FLASH/SUPERMAN in the "Comics in Your Future" column, with Cliff Biggers writing, "We can only hope that the entire DC First line is this strong!" The "Reading Room" reviews THE POWERPUFF GIRLS #24, with Jack Abramowitz writing, "Happily, THE POWERPUFF GIRLS is true to its roots… the kids will eat it up." SCOOBY-DOO #58 is reviewed as well, with Brett Weiss writing, "the issue_ offers young readers an entertaining assortment of action, comedy and mystery." Weiss also looks at GREEN ARROW: QUIVER, calling it "a nice hardcover volume and a must-have." Earth-2 and THE FLASH are the subjects of this issue's "Back Issue's" column, with Brent Frankenhoff chronicling the development of DC's parallel worlds. The "Reading Room" in the April 19 issue of Comics Buyer's Guide (#1483) includes a review of YOUNG JUSTICE #42, which Jack Abramowitz calls "a good stand-alone issue." Also reviewed are JUSTICE LEAGUE ADVENTURES #5, IMPULSE #84 and DEXTER'S LABORATORY #28. The Flash's Rogues Gallery takes center stage in a "Back Issues" column by Craig Shutt. The March issue of Action Figure Digest includes coverage of the SILVER AGE SUPERGIRL AND SUPERBOY DELUXE ACTION FIGURE SET, the JUSTICE LEAGUE ANIMATED GREEN LANTERN JOHN STEWART MAQUETTE STATUE, the GREEN LANTERN GUARDIAN GANTHET STATUE, THE SPECTRE STATUE, the APOLLO, MIDNIGHTER, ENGINEER and JENNY SPARKS AUTHORITY ACTION FIGURES, and the DEATH WALL SCROLL. NEWS FROM THE INTERNET Time.com has posted a review of GRIP, with Andrew Arnold writing, "Gross, creepy, sexy, action-packed and weird, GRIP: THE STRANGE WORLD OF MEN completely satisfies your basic comix needs." Comic Book Galaxy now features a review of ORION #25, with Alan David Doane writing, "Even if you've never tried it before, there's action and very human drama to be found among the New Gods in this final issue, and even now, I strongly advise you to give it a try." Also currently on the site are reviews of LAB RATS #1, GREEN LANTERN #149, NIGHTWING #68, and SUPERMAN/SAVAGE DRAGON: CHICAGO, which Doane calls "an old-fashioned inter-company super- hero team-up." Comic Book Resources has posted an article on the upcoming mini-series FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE JUSTICE LEAGUE, including covers to issues #2 and 3. Comic Book Continuum spotlights Sneak Peeks at LAB RATS #1, GREEN LANTERN #149, IMPULSE #85, GREYSHIRT: INDIGO SUNSET #5, THE POWER COMPANY #3, NIGHTWING #68, TRANSMETROPOLITAN #55 and THE SANDMAN PRESENTS: THE THESSALIAD #4. Also at the site is an article about GEN13 #0, a preview of the upcoming WildStorm series 21 DOWN, and an interview with actor Michael Rosenbaum about Lex Luthor. New reviews at The Fourth Rail look at NIGHTWING #68, which Randy Lander calls "one of the stronger chapters of the ["Bruce Wayne: Fugitive"] story." Also reviewed are GREEN LANTERN #149, LAB RATS #1 and THE SANDMAN PRESENTS: THE THESSALIAD #4, with Don MacPherson writing, "The real draw of this story is [Bill] Willingham's rather black humor." Hero Realm features an article on the upcoming WildStorm series 21 DOWN, along with a review of HAWKMAN #2, which Steve Sellers calls "an excellent high adventure title with strong roots in DCU history." Denny O'Neil is interviewed at Newsarama about the upcoming conclusion of AZRAEL: AGENT OF THE BAT. Also at Newsarama are articles on GEN13 #0 and 21 DOWN. Writer Jonathan Scott Fuqua discusses his upcoming VERTIGO graphic novel IN THE SHADOW OF EDGAR ALLEN POE at Pop Image. SMALLVILLE, JUSTICE LEAGUE, STATIC SHOCK AND THE ZETA PROJECT EPISODE SCHEDULES DC has been supplied with the following episode schedule for Smallville, Static Shock and The Zeta Project on the WB and the animated Justice League on the Cartoon Network. All times are Eastern and Pacific: 4/13 (8:30 am) "Junior" (Static Shock) 4/13 (9:30 am) "Resume Mission" (The Zeta Project – New) 4/13 (12:30 pm) "Fury, Pt. 1" (Justice League) 4/13 (10:00 pm) "Fury, Pt. 1" (Justice League – Widescreen) 4/14 (7:00 pm) "Fury, Pt. 2" (Justice League – New) 4/15 (8:30 pm) "Paradise Lost, Pt. 1" (Justice League) 4/16 (8:30 pm) "Paradise Lost, Pt. 2" (Justice League) 4/16 (9:00 pm) "Stray" (Smallville – New) 4/17 (8:30 pm) "War World, Pt. 1" (Justice League) 4/18 (8:30 pm) "War World, Pt. 2" (Justice League) 4/20 (8:30 am) "Bent Out Of Shape" (Static Shock) 4/20 (9:30 am) "Lost and Found" (The Zeta Project – New) 4/20 (12:30 pm) "Fury, Pt. 2" (Justice League) 4/20 (10:00 pm) "Fury, Pt. 2" (Justice League – Widescreen) 4/21 (7:00 pm) "Legends, Pt. 1" (Justice League – New) 4/22 (8:30 pm) "The Brave and the Bold, Pt. 1" (Justice League) Be advised that this schedule is subject to change. +++++ From Rich Johnston, THE 2000 SQUIDDY JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR, in his ALL THE RAGE Gossip Column at: http://www.SilverBulletComicBooks.com RUMOUR BARRIER "I accept that the following material is rumour and gossip, intended to entertain only. "I won't repeat the information inside as fact. I understand if I want the truth, I will go to Silver Bulletins. "I enter freely with my mind open and my blinkers off." Now, onto the rumours. Nexus Of All Reality "Glad you're back. Helps keep my blood pressure up." - Patty Jeres, DC Comics. The Ghost Of Al Milgrom Remember the Universe X: Spidey story All The Rage covered way back? Check here and here if you can't. Basically inker Al Milgrom inked in a nasty comment directed at departing editor-in-chief Bob Harras in Spidey: Universe X as a gag, which was then later removed. However, when the art files reverted to a previous colour file, the gag reappeared, was printed and the book withdrawn from sale, pulped and reprinted. Al Milgrom was fired from gross misdemeanour, which meant he lost his benefits for being employed for so long and only rehired for freelance work, and told to pay off the cost of the reprinting from his salary. That was then. The Universe X trade paperback Volume 1 has just shipped. And it includes the comment in question. Marvel editor Dave Bogart tells me "Yep. We printed the wrong page. As to what happened, it appears that the wrong version of the page was archived when the original comic was printed. Who's fault is it? I couldn't even begin to tell you, the book was printed well over a year ago. Should we have known better? Yes. But truth be told, no one who works in our trades program was even at Marvel at the time. And believe me, no disrespect was intended. I hope this clears things up." Last time the comic was withdrawn, pulped and reprinted. I guess this won't be happening now though_ This Has A Rumour Value Of 9 Out Of 10 An Issue With Marvel I hear that Grant Morrison isn't too happy about this 18-24 issues a year thing Marvel are trying to encourage - especially as they used him in the example given to promote the idea. While the idea of doubling his paycheck may be an attractive one, he may simply not have the time or inclination to double his X-Men writing gig - especially when he has Filth, Ultimate Fantastic Four and other non-comics gigs on the boil. Morrison did not choose to reply to enquiries. This Has A Rumour Value Of 3 Out of 10 Killer Queen Thanks to her popularity in New X-Men, here's a White Queen mini-series in the works. I understand that editor Dave Bogart has been ringing round a few "babe" artists... Randy Queen was up for it, Joe Benitez turned it down, I hear Ken Chau may well have got the gig. This Has A Rumour Value Of 4 Out of 10 Rough Trades Despite previous discussions with Titan Books, Panini has plumped to produce English language Marvel trade paperbacks for the UK bookstore and comic bookstore market with British comics distributor Red Route. This should expand distribution of the Marvel TPBs away from the limited Diamond (and often out-of-stock) distribution through the UK. With Titan already printing and distribution selected DC, Dark Horse and Image titles through bookstores and comic shops, it looks like there may be a little head-to-head competition. And this might be just the boost red Route needs to go head to head with Diamond in the UK. Panini gained the Marvel license in Europe during Marvel's financial difficulties and have sold a large amount of trades through the European market. While the deal was very beneficial for Panini, they do pay a certain percentage of sales back to Marvel. None of that money, however, is passed onto creators as either royalty or incentive payments according to current contracts, and it was this that caused quite a fuss a few years ago when Jim Steranko spoke out about hundreds of thousands of his Nick Fury series being published outside the USA and nary a cent coming to his bank account. The books will have different covers and a different trade dress - and that's not all. Panini are looking to include sketch pages and text pieces to accompany the work. The Amazing Spider-Man: Coming Home, for example, will contain the issues from the US collection as well as the WTC themed issue 36 - which currently will not appear in the US trades. This Has A Rumour Value Of 9 Out of 10 Diamond Geyser Some of you might remember I was in Iceland recently. While jumping over geysers, walking behind waterfall and feasted on smoked puffin, I had the opportunity to visit Pétur Yngvi Yamagata, Iceland's oldest half-Icelander, half Japanese inhabitant, manager of Nexus, Iceland's only comic shop. And what a store it is, with a selection of trades worthy of Gosh Comics or Page 45, well presented, well lit and covering a wide range of cross genre and left-of-centre superhero comics. Pétur insisted on giving me discount and, after going for some very pleasant drinks surrounded by some very pleasant Icelandic women, a copy of Top Ten Book Two in return for a plug. I'd have given him one anyway. Comic book pros_ Iceland is slap bang between the UK and the USA, they can pretty much all speak English, the nightlife is fantastic as are the local attractions. You may even find yourself, like I did, bathing in hot spring mineral pools with The Strokes. And Nexus just love to do signings_ just ask Warren Ellis, he's off there again in a few weeks. This Has A Puffin Value Of 10 Out Of 10 Green Thoughts I hear that Greg Capello is being considered by Axel Alonzo to take over the art on Hulk when John Romita Jr leaves the book. This Has A Rumour Value Of 5 Out of 10 Ian World News Marvel recently tried to hire Ian Churchill, who was dropped from Uncanny X-Men after he and Joe Casey had creative differences. Marvel told Churchill that they realise they were wrong to choose Casey over him, especially now that Casey has also been dropped from Uncanny X- Men, but Churchill told them no. He's sick of Marvel, the x-books and the whole of comics for now and plans on taking a year-and-a-half off to travel the world. Um. This sounds like it's probably from Churchill's side, you know_ This Has A Rumour Value Of 3 Out of 10 King Leach So, who owns Miracleman/Marvelman now? Well let's have a think. If Dez Skinn's claim (admittedly tucked away in the rumour column of his own Comics International) that the contract has a reversion clause to the original creators holds, this is how it pans out. Originally, in Warrior Magazine, Dez Skinn, Alan moore and Garry Leach shared ownership of the character between them. When Alan Davis came on board, they each donated some of their share to Davis. But when Eclipse came along and Davis fell out with both Skinn and Moore, he gave all his share of Marvelman to Garry Leach. And later Moore gave his share to Neil Gaiman and Mark Buckingham. So after the Eclipse rights reverted, it would currently mean that Gary Leach is on 60%, Neil Gaiman/Mark Buckingham on 30% and Dez Skinn on 10%. And Todd McFarlane on nothing. Which makes Garry Leach the king maker. He currently works for both Wildstorm and Marvel. I understand though that Wildstorm are not able to pursue the matter as DC Comics' legal people do not want to let themselves be open to a legal suit from, say, Mick Anglo's half- brother's niece once removed. AOL Time Warner would make for a much bigger financial target than a debt-ridden Marvel. Let's look forward to some new Garry Leach courting from Marvel in the near future. This Has A Rumour Value Of 7 Out Of 10 Lending A Hand For those who you who haven't already been swamped with appeals for Top Shelf Publishing, in their time of trouble with distributors, LPC, go here and spend over $50. If you haven't got From Hell or Alec: How To Be An Artist then that's your first stop. I'm currently waiting for email receipt of the order I put in_ Chris? For those who fancy giving Drawn And Quarterly a hand, likewise here. Golem's Mighty Swing and Berlin are your first choices. For those who wonder what would have happened if Marvel had signed to CDS (part of LPC) when they were trying to get the best deal from Diamond_ just don't go anywhere. This Has A Dread Warning of 7 Out Of 10 ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [5] Interview Paul Dale Roberts Silhouet98@cs.com Interview with Jimmy Palmiotti! Question: Tell us something personal about yourself? Your family life, where you were born and raised, what schools you attended? BORN AND RAISED IN BROOKLYN N.Y. I HAVE 3 BROTHERS, ONE OF WHICH IS IN THE BUSINESS...PETER. Dad passed away 12 years ago, and Mom still around kicking everyone's ass. WENT TO THE HIGH SCHOOL OF ART & DESIGN IN NYC, THEN TO N.Y.TECH FOR ADVERTISING, THEN ON AGAIN AND OFF AGAIN TO THE ART STUDENTS LEAGUE FOR 6 YEARS.WORKED IN ADVERTISING FOR 10 YEARS THEN SWITCHED TO COMICS...AND HERE I, AM, LOL. Question: What was the first comic book you ever read? NO CLUE REALLY, MAYBE SUPERMAN OR ARCHIE...WASN'T A BIG DEAL IN MY LIFE WHEN I WAS A KID. I WAS MORE INTERESTED IN CLIMBING TREES AND BLOWING THINGS UP. Question: What were your favorite comic books growing up? SUPERMAN, HULK, MASTER OF KUNG FU AND KILLRAVEN. WHEN HEAVY METAL STARTED, THAT BECAME #1 TO ME Question: Can you please tell us what you have planned for Superboy? WELL, NOT MY PLANS, BUT THE LAST ISSUE IS #100, AND WE END IT ON A GOOD NOTE...SUPERMAN STOPS BY, AND SUPERBOY GETS LAID BY LIKE 3 DIFFERENT GIRLS....OK, THAT IS ISSUE 101, WHICH IS TOO BAD THEY CANCELED IT AT 100, NOW EVERYONE WILL MISS OUT. Question: What's with the different approach that is happening with Superboy? What's with his stubble? What's going to happen in issue #100? WELL, THE STUBBLE IS JOHNS IDEA, AND I DIG IT...HE IS GROWING UP, SO HE HAS STUBBLE. ISSUE 100 WILL SEE THE END OF KON'S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE NEW NEIGHBORHOOD WE INTRODUCED IN ISSUE 94, AS WELL AS A CAST MEMBER FROM THE NEW CREW. I THINK DAN AND I DO A GOOD JOB WRAPPING UP ALL THE STORYLINES AND THIS ISSUE IS A REAL GOOD JUMPING OFF ISSUE...LOL.. Question: Tell us what inspired you and Joe Quesada to start the Marvel Knights line of comics? Cash and a chance to prove we can make a difference, ...now the whole line is marvel knights kind of books, lol. Question: Tell us about the old days at Harris and Vampirella? WELL, THEY WERE FUN TIMES, THE EDITOR IN CHIEF , JOHNNY REINGOLD IS A GREAT GUY, WE ARE STILL GREAT FRIENDS TO THIS DAY. THEY WERE LOOKING TO JUICE UP THE LINE, SO I INTRODUCED AMANDA CONNER TO THEM, AND ALONG WITH WARREN ELLIS, MARK MILLAR, GRANT MORRISON, CHRIS GOLDEN AND TOM SNIEGOSKI...ALL MAJOR NAMES. WE DID SOME OF WHAT I THINK , THE BEST VAMPI WORK THAT WASN'T IN THE B&W WARREN MAGAZINES. IT REALLY WAS A FUN TIME AND I GOT TO WORK WITH MY FUTURE WIFE, AMANDA. Question: You may not realize this, but I met you and Joe Quesada at the 1997 San Diego International Comic Convention. My wife Pat said either it was you or Joe that was cute...I can't remember. Hands down it was me....tell her to stop calling me now, and I loved the pics she sent me from that party, wink-wink! Question: I would ask you about your resume...but, it's way too long. You have been involved with Kevin Smith and Daredevil, Ash, Punisher and the list goes on and on. How do you like working with Kevin Smith? Will we ever see Ash again? KEVIN WAS a lot OF FUN TO WORK WITH...A REALLY TALENTED NICE GUY. HE DID A GREAT JOB FOR US. YOU WILL NOT SEE ASH THE COMIC FOR A LONG TIME, BUT MAY SEE THE MOVIE FROM DREAMWORKS ONE DAY...KEEPING MY FINGERS CROSSED ON THAT ONE. Question: Do you have a website and if you do what is the URL address? WELL...ONE IS BROOKLYNBIZARRO.COM, YOU HAVE TO BE 18...LOL...A PET PROJECT WITH MY 2 FRIENDS.YOU CAN ALSO GO TO PAPERFILMS SOON, IN ABOUT A MONTH. ITS A COMPANY I CO-OWN WITH AMANDA CONNER AND JUSTIN GRAY Question: How can somebody contact you? I POST ON DC BOARDS AND NEWSARAMA ALL THE TIME Question: Do you miss the days of Vampirella? NOPE, I JUST LOOK BACK WITH A SMILE. THAT IS THE PAST, AND I AM GLAD TO KEEP IT THERE. Question: What are some of your future projects? WELL, THAT'S A LOADED QUESTION. RIGHT NOW COMING IN JULY THERE IS A 3 ISSUE PAINTED SERIES CALLED BEAUTIFUL KILLER COMING FROM BLACKBULL I WROTE. THE ARTIST ON THE BOOK IS PHIL NOTO AND I COULDN'T BE HAPPIER WITH THE WAY THIS PROJECT IS TURNING . THEY ARE GOING TO GIVE A SNEAK PEAK IN WIZARD NEXT MONTH BY PRINTING THE FIRST 10 PAGES. NEXT UP, CO WRITING WITH JUSTIN GRAY IS TWO NEW ON-GOING SERIES HITTING STANDS IN SEPTEMBER. THE FIRST IS 21 DOWN, WITH ART BY JESUS SIAZ AND COLOR BY PAUL MOUNTS....AND THE SECOND IS "THE RESISTANCE" AND I CANT TELL YOU ANYTHING ABOUT THAT YET...SORRY...LOL....YOU WILL SEE A SNEAK PREVIEW OF BOTH BOOKS IN THE BACK OF THE GEN 13 THIRTEEN CENT COMIC COMING SOON FROM D.C. WILDSTORM. FROM IMAGE, A BOOK CALLED "THE PRO" WRITTEN BY GARTH WITH ART BY AMANDA, MYSELF AND PAUL MOUNTS, THAT HITS JULY. INKING WISE, I AM WORKING ION SCI-SPY AND MIDNIGHT MASS FOR VERTIGO AS WELL AS A COUPLE OF ISSUES OVER AMANDA ON CODENAME;KNOCKOUT. FOR MARVEL I AM WORKING WITH GULACY ON A 6 ISSUE MASTER OF KUNG FU SERIES FOR MARVEL MAX. Question: If you were stranded on a desert island, what 3 things would you bring with you and why? FOOD ,AMANDA CONNER , AND BABY OIL. Question: Your thoughts on the comic industry? I WOULD LOVE TO SEE MORE NON-SUPERHERO COMICS ON THE TOP 10...MORE SCIENCE FICTION, CRIME AND DETECTIVE STUFF....AND PUBLISHERS SWITCH OVER TO TRADE BOOKS ONLY...AHHH TO DREAM Question: Your 3 favorite fictional heroes and why? I HAVE NONE.....REALLY...MINE ARE REAL. Question: Here's an off-the-wall question. Have you ever experienced anything of the paranormal? If you do please explain. WELL...TOO LONG TO GET INTO, BUT I SEE DEAD PEOPLE.... Question: Your 3 real life heroes and why? MY DAD, MY MOM AND AMANDA CONNER. THEY INSPIRE ME EVEN WHEN THEY ARE NOT AROUND. Question: What cons are you going to? PITTSBURGH, SAN DIEGO, WIZARDWORLD IN CHICAGO, PHILLY CON, AND SOME MORE I CANT REMEMBER Question: What movies, cartoons and TV shows are your favorites? LOVE REN & STIMPY, CROSSING JORDAN, LAW AND ORDER, THE MAN SHOW, MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE AND MY FAVORITE....FUTURERAMA Question: What books do you read? LOTS....RIGHT NOW A BIT TOO BUSY WITH WORK, BUT I LOVE FICTION AND ANYTHING TO DO WITH NYC HISTORY. Question: What are your hobbies and recreational activities? SPENDING TIME WITH AMANDA, TRAVELING. MOVIES AND TIME WITH MY CREW OF FRIENDS. MY ONLY HOBBY IS COLLECTING ART. Question: Do you ever watch the Sopranos? I don't even know why I asked that...just something that popped in my head. YES I DO...FUNNY STUFF , BUT I LIKE 6 FEET UNDER AND OZ BETTER. Question: Weren't you also involved with Valiant's Ninjak and Solar...or is my mind playing tricks on me? YES AND YES. BEEN THERE, CASHED THE ROYALTY CHECK AND PAID FOR THE LAP DANCES. Question: What comic books do you read now? HEAVY METAL, ANYTHING FROM WAID, MIGNOLA, AZZARELLO, ENNIS ELLIS AND SO ON....DON'T READ TOO MANY SUPERHERO COMICS. Question: When can we expect Jimmy Palmiotti: The Movie? Who will play you? ANDY GARCIA WOULD PLAY ME BEST...BUT A MOVIE ABOUT MY LIFE WOULD HAVE TO BE A FOREIGN FILM FOR ALL THE SEX AND GORE...LOL Question: That ends the interview, any parting words? YES, GO OUT AND HAVE FUN, REMEMBER, THE REAL THING IS ALWAYS BETTER, OH, AND TELL BIN LADEN TO GO #$%!! HIMSELF IF YOU EVER SEE HIM ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [6] Interview Tim O'Shea tim_jen@mindspring.com Originally run at www.orcafresh.net This interview appears here with permission. Tackling the Industry through Novels and Comics: An ORCA Q&A with Christopher Golden By Tim O'Shea Every once and awhile you run across a creator so busy that you can't do justice to his depth and breadth of work in a one paragraph summary. When this occurs, I'm lucky and it usually is a situation where the creator has a website. Writer Christopher Golden, current co-writer (with Mike Mignola and Tom Sniegoski) on the Hellboy spin off comic Mike Mignola's B.P.R.D.[Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense]: Hollow Earth (Dark Horse [http://www.darkhorse.com/products/series/series.html?SBMT=FORM&seriesn ame=Hellboy_ST1-B.P.R.D.]), is such a case. Once you've read this interview, please be sure to visit his website (www.christophergolden.com). My thanks to Christopher for his time and thoughts. Enjoy. ORCA: As an author of Hellboy novels, in what ways is writing BPRD different than tackling Hellboy? (Other than the obvious "One's a Hellboy story, this is not.") I mean it is set in the "Hellboy universe" but essentially without Hellboy. Golden: The Hellboy stories I've written have other characters, especially Bones of Giants, but they're really about HIM. BPRD is about exploring the mythology of the Bureau and the Hellboy universe as a whole and getting to know the supporting cast far better than you do when everything's essentially through Hellboy's perspective. ORCA: Of the lead characters in BPRD, do you have a favorite? Golden: Abe. No question. But in this three issue series, Liz Sherman--a vital part of the BPRD to my mind--is not a very active player. It's partly ABOUT her, as much as it's about all of them finding a place in the world now that Hellboy's gone from the Bureau, but she's not really a mover and a shaker this time around. If we were to do more BPRD stories in the future, that would change, and it would be hard for me then to choose between Abe and Liz. ORCA: How are the writing responsibilities divided between three people? Golden: It's simpler than you'd think. Tom and I came up with the basic plot. Mike and I fleshed it out over a long period of time. Tom and I wrote the first draft of each script. Mike revised some pages, and wrote brand new additional pages and entire scenes that he wanted to make sure were in there. Thus, three writers. ORCA: You've worked for Marvel, you've worked for Dark Horse, any interest in writing for DC? Golden: Um, actually I have. Tom and I wrote Batman: Realworlds a couple of years ago, and we did a Lady Shiva story in Batman Chronicles. I'd love a chance to really play in the DC universe, and another shot at Marvel as well. There are so many characters I love that I've always hoped to have an opportunity to put MY spin on, without seventeen people tweaking and poking and trying to make it what THEY would do. There are a few things I've done for both companies, the two Spider-Man Unlimiteds I did and the Lady Shiva story for instance, that are examples of that. I'm really happy with that stuff. As for other things . . . I have ideas for just about every character that I have a passion for. I hope that someday I'll get the chance to do one or two of them. ORCA: What's on the Golden creative horizon for 2002 and beyond? Golden: Hmm. Lots. My new novel THE FERRYMAN hits stores May 7th. I'm going to be doing a couple more BUFFY novel projects and I'm currently writing a new book in my SHADOW SAGA series called THE GATHERING DARK, but that won't be out for a while. Then I'm going to be writing a JUSTICE LEAGUE novel for Pocket Books. More news on that another time. I also just made a new book deal with a new publisher but it's too early to talk about that yet. I've really been focusing much more on my real job, which is as a novelist, than on comics lately. But I do have a secret project Mike Oeming and I have been developing together, as well as a few things with Avatar that are gonna be very cool. All (or most) of them creator-owned. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [7] Comics Culture Shrapnel Kris Naudus Krissy80@aol.com [Kris Naudus is a full-time student at New York University, founder of the Justice League of Stuyvesant, part-time Amazonian warrior and distinguished scholar of geek studies. Her previous roles have included "pathetic Star Wars fan #6" outside the Zeigfield Theatre last May, as well as "bored cashier #4" at Barnes and Noble. ] Dressing Up for the Spectators Wow. Just wow. So much has been going on - Ghost World at the Oscars, Blade II in theaters, the feud over Captain Marvel... I can barely keep up. In fact, I missed my column last week, but that was probably due to me being momentarily stunned by the good weather. One thing that's been keeping me busy is the other magazine I work for, which is in actuality an entirely new venture. We used to be Tsunami, a publication out of the Terrapin Anime Society down at the University of Maryland College Park (congrats to the Terps in the NCAA tourney, BTW). Then there were some problems with the club president, and in the end it was just easier and better to quit. So we're starting our own magazine. I decline to say anything further about the disagreements until I know how this will all turn out, wouldn't want to have bad blood or be unprofessional. It's a shame really, because it's a good story. We've spent the last month trying to think of a name. You'd think this be easy, considering our focus is anime and we generally think along the same wavelengths. Well, both are true but unfortunately we think along two wavelengths. One (the one I am on) is leaning toward Japanese-derived names, while the other is falling into "Anime ____." The main argument against a Japanese name is that its too "obscure" while the argument against the latter is that anything with "anime" in the same is too generic. Which is true. If you were to make a list of all the anime companies that ever existed, how many have a name like that? And how many of those companies with such a name failed? It's a bit disproportionate. One cannot be part of a crowd. So it leads me to wonder, what does attract people? What makes a magazine stand out? Or a comic, for that matter. I think about what I have bought over the years. I bought my first issue of Sandman because the cover was very, very yellow. I bought Impulse #9 because it was blue. Those were colors I wasn't used to seeing on a comics store shelf. Too many blacks and browns and muddled colors. You can use a lot of colors to no effect because they cancel each other out. I know Warren Ellis wrote about that particular issue, the fact that many comics are very, very ugly. Ugly art, ugly characters, ugly colors. Maybe it's getting better. I know it is, because I can buy things like Planetary and Alias which are always so very pretty. Experimentation, diversification. Actual attention to art history makes covers like those striking and memorable. There's always those words on the cover that tell you what's inside, well with magazines there are. And sometimes you still get comics with word blurbs on the cover. If it's dialogue they are usually tipping their hats in tribute. But something it's more captioning, and they should kill that too. It's never done right. It's either campy or pretentious ... or both. And the title ... where I started in this rambling. Does it matter to us? Do we think about whether there's an X in the title, or do we buy things on creators alone? Is that the right thing to do? It always seemed to be, until this past week at least. Bill Jemas claimed that Peter David only writes for his die-hard fans now, cramming too much sass and in-jokes into each issue for new readers to jump in and enjoy his stories. I don't know if this is true - I am not a regular reader, but I enjoy anything by Peter David that I read. So why don't I buy his stuff? I suppose because while I enjoy, it doesn't interest me. How do you interest people? Marketing is an arcane art, almost mystical. It certainly is rather oblique and random, or it always seemed to me. But then again, it might be that I don't know anything about it from the technical end. I wonder how many comic book creators know marketing, and how many marketing people truly know comics. I've seen companies make a lot of bad decisions, decisions that could have only come from a marketing department not really all that into comics. I think Marvel is successful because the people in charge really love the artform (not the industry, and let's maintain that distinction) and really like to get their hands dirty. When you got people working with everything, they tend to gain a new appreciation for the finished product. That still doesn't get me a name. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [8] Eisner Award Nominations From: http://www.comic-con.org/pages/2002Eisners.html Eisner Awards Nominations Announced The 2002 Eisner Awards Nominees for 2001 publications are:: Best Short Story "The Adventures of Hergé," by Boquet, Fromental, and Stanislas, in Drawn & Quarterly, vol. 4 (Drawn & Quarterly) "The Eltingville Club in 'The Intervention,'" by Evan Dorkin, in Dork #9 (Slave Labor) "His Story," by Dave McKean, in Bento #1 and Pictures That [Tick] (Hourglass/Allen Spiegel Fine Arts) "Me and Edith Head," by Sara Ryan and Steve Lieber, in Cicada, vol. 4 no. 1 (Carus Publishing) "Oh, To Celebrate," by Miriam Katin in Drawn & Quarterly, vol. 4 (Drawn & Quarterly) "The Willful Death of a Stereotype," by Chris Staros and Bo Hampton, in Expo 2001 (The EXPO) Best Single Issue Eightball #22, by Dan Clowes (Fantagraphics) The Fall, by Ed Brubaker and Jason Lutes (Drawn & Quarterly) Finder #22: "Fight Scene," by Carla Speed McNeil (Lightspeed) 100 Bullets #27: "Idol Chatter," by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso (Vertigo/DC) Optic Nerve #8: Bomb Scare," by Adrian Tomine (Drawn & Quarterly) Best Serialized Story Amazing Spider-Man #30-35: "Coming Home," by J. Michael Straczynski, John Romita Jr., and Scott Hanna (Marvel) Hellblazer #164–167: "Highwater," by Brian Azzarello and Marcelo Frusin (Vertigo/DC) Finder #18-22: "Talisman," by Carla Speed McNeil (Lightspeed) New X-Men #114-117: "E Is for Extinction," by Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely, Ethan Van Sciver, and Tim Townsend (Marvel) Queen and Country #1-4: "Operation: Broken Ground," by Greg Rucka and Steve Rolston (Oni) Best Continuing Series Finder. by Carla Speed McNeil (Lightspeed) 100 Bullets, by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso (Vertigo/DC) Planetary, by Warren Ellis and John Cassaday (Wildstorm/DC) Queen & Country. by Greg Rucka and Steve Rolston (Oni) Ruse, by Mark Waid, Butch Guice, and Michael Perkins (CrossGen) Best Limited Series Enemy Ace: War in Heaven, by Garth Ennis, Chris Weston, Christian Alamy, and Russ Heath (DC) Hellboy: Conqueror Worm, by Mike Mignola (Dark Horse Maverick) Hopeless Savages, by Jen Van Meter, Christine Norrie, and Chynna Clugston-Major (Oni) Rose, by Jeff Smith and Charles Vess (Cartoon Books) Scary Godmother: Ghouls Out for Summer, by Jill Thompson (Sirius) Best New Series Private Beach, by David Hahn (Slave Labor) Queen & Country, by Greg Rucka and Steve Rolston (Oni) Ruse by Mark Waid, Butch Guice, and Michael Perkins (CrossGen) The Sandwalk Adventures, by Jay Hosler (Active Synapse) True Story, Swear to God, by Tom Beland (Clib's Boy Comics) Best Title for a Younger Audience Courageous Princess: The Quest for Home, by Rod Espinosa (Antarctic) Herobear and the Kid, by Mike Kunkel (Astonish) Little Lit: Strange Stories for Strange Kids, edited by Art Spiegelman and Francoise Mouly (HarperCollins) Patty Cake & Friends, by Scott Roberts (Amaze Ink/Slave Labor) The Return of Alison Dare, Little Miss Adventures, by J. Torres and J. Bone (Oni) Best Humor Publication The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius: Monkey Tales, by Judd Winick (Oni) Bizarro Comics, edited by Joey Cavalieri (DC) Dork #9, by Evan Dorkin (Slave Labor) Hey, Mister: Dial "M" for Mister, by Pete Sickman-Garner (Top Shelf) Jingle Belle: The Mighty Elves. by Paul Dini and J. Bone (Oni) Radioactive Man, by Batton Lash, Abel Laxamana, Dan De Carlo, Mike DeCarlo, and Bob Smith (Bongo) Best Anthology Bizarro Comics, edited by Joey Cavalieri (DC) Comics Journal Winter Special 2002, edited by Gary Groth and Anne Elizabeth Moore (Fantagraphics) Drawn & Quarterly, vol. 4, edited by Chris Oliveros (Drawn & Quarterly) Little Lit: Strange Stories for Strange Kids, edited by Art Spiegelman and Francoise Mouly (HarperCollins) Oni Press Summer Color Special 2001, edited by Jamie Rich (Oni) Best Graphic Album—New The Book of Leviathan, by Peter Blegvad (Overlook Press) Fallout, by Jim Ottaviani, Janine Johnston, Steve Lieber, Vince Locke, Bernie Mireault, and Jeff Parker (GT Labs) The Golem's Mighty Swing, by James Sturm (Drawn & Quarterly) Hey, Wait . . . by Jason (Fantagraphics) Mail Order Bride, by Mark Kalesniko (Fantagraphics) The Name of the Game, by Will Eisner (DC) Pictures That [Tick] by Dave McKean (Hourglass/Allen Spiegel Fine Arts) Best Graphic Album—Reprint Batman: Dark Victory, by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale (DC) Berlin: City of Stones, by Jason Lutes (Drawn & Quarterly) Box Office Poison, by Alex Robinson (Top Shelf) Scatterbrain, edited by Phil Amara and Scott Allie (Dark Horse Maverick) Stray Bullets: Other People, by David Lapham (El Capitan) Best Archival Collection/Project Akira, by Katsuhiro Otomo (Dark Horse) Plastic Man Archives, vol. 3, by Jack Cole (DC) Spy vs. Spy: The Complete Casebook, by Antonio Prohias (Watson Guptill) Wendell All Together, by Howard Cruse (Olmstead Press) The Complete Classic Adventures of Zorro, by Alex Toth (Image) Best U.S. Edition of Foreign Material Akira, by Katsuhiro Otomo (Dark Horse) Eagle, by Kaiji Kawaguchi (Viz) Hey, Wait . . . by Jason (Fantagraphics) Nogegon, by Luc and Francois Schuiten (Humanoids) Uzumaki, byJunji Ito (Viz) Best Writer Brian Azzarello, 100 Bullets, Hellblazer (Vertigo/DC) Brian Michael Bendis, Powers (Image); Alias, Daredevil, Ultimate Spider-Man (Marvel) Grant Morrison, FF 1234, New X-Men (Marvel) Greg Rucka, Queen & Country (Oni); Detective Comics (DC) Mark Waid, Ruse (CrossGen) Best Writer/Artist Jessica Abel, La Perdida (Fantagraphics) Dan Clowes, Eightball (Fantagraphics) Carla Speed McNeil, Finder (Lightspeed) James Sturm, The Golem's Mighty Swing (Drawn & Quarterly) Adrian Tomine, Optic Nerve (Drawn & Quarterly) Best Writer/Artist—Humor Tom Beland, True Story, Swear to God (Clib's Boy Comics) Chynna Clugston-Major, Blue Monday: Absolute Beginners (Oni) Evan Dorkin, Dork (Slave Labor) Makoto Kobayashi, "What's Michael?" in Super Manga Blast (Dark Horse) Chris Ware, Acme Novelty Library (Fantagraphics) Judd Winick, The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius (Oni) Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team John Cassaday, Planetary (Wildstorm/DC) Butch Guice, Ruse (CrossGen) Gene Ha, Top 10 (ABC) Humberto Ramos/Sandra Hope, Out There (Wildstorm/DC) Eduardo Risso, 100 Bullets (Vertigo/DC) Francois Schuitten, Brusel (NBM); Nogegon (Humanoids) Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art) Allen Coulter and Snakebite, The Red Star (Image) Dave McKean, Pictures That [Tick] (Hourglass/Allen Spiegel Fine Arts) David Mack, Daredevil #16-19 (Marvel) John Van Fleet, Batman: The Ankh (DC) Charles Vess, Rose (Cartoon Books) Best Coloring Edgar Delgado/Studio F, Out There (Wildstorm/DC) Laura DePuy, Ruse (CrossGen); Ministry of Space (Image) Patricia Mulvihill, Wonder Woman (DC), 100 Bullets (Vertigo/DC) Jose Villarrubia, Fantastic Four 1234 (Marvel) Chris Ware, Acme Novelty Library #15 (Fantagraphics) Best Lettering Dan Clowes, Eightball #22 (Fantagraphics) Todd Klein, Promethea, Tom Strong's Terrific Tales, Tomorrow Stories, Top 10, Greyshirt (ABC); The Sandman Presents: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Dreams But Were Afraid to Ask (Vertigo/DC); Detective Comics, The Dark Knight Strikes Again (DC); Castle Waiting (Olio); Universe X (Marvel) Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo, Groo: Death & Taxes (Dark Horse Maverick) Dave Sim, Cerebus (Aardvark-Vanaheim) Chris Ware, Acme Novelty Library #15 (Fantagraphics) Best Cover Artist Tim Bradstreet, Hellblazer (DC) Dave Johnson, Detective Comics (DC), 100 Bullets (Vertigo/DC) J. G. Jones, Codename: Knockout, Transmetropolitan (Vertigo/DC) Jae Lee, "Our Worlds at War" specials (DC); Fantastic Four 1234 (Marvel) Mike Mignola, Hellboy: Conqueror Worm (Dark Horse Maverick) Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition Jen Benka and Kris Dresen (Manya) Nick Bertozzi (The Masochists) Arthur Dela Cruz (Kissing Chaos) Dean Haspiel (Opposable Thumbs) Dylan Horrocks (Hicksville, Atlas) Best Comics-Related Periodical Alter Ego, edited by Roy Thomas (TwoMorrows) Comic Book Artist, edited by Jon Cooke (TwoMorrows) The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth and Anne Elizabeth Moore (Fantagraphics) Best Comics-Related Book Hal Foster: Prince of Illustrators, Father of the Adventure Strip, by Brian M. Kane (Vanguard) Jack Cole and Plastic Man, by Art Spiegelman (Chronicle Books) Kimota! The Miracleman Companion, by George Khoury (TwoMorrows) OPUS, vol. 2, by Barry Windsor-Smith (Fantagraphics) Peanuts: The Art of Charles M. Schulz, edited by Chip Kidd (Pantheon) Best Comics-Related Item Dark Horse classic comic characters statuettes, sculpted by Yoe Studio (Dark Horse) Hellboy PVC set (Dark Horse) Little Enid Doll (Press-Pop Gallery) R. Crumb Catholic Schoolgirl statue, sculpted by Ken Melton (Bowen designs) Roman Dirge's Lenore lunchbox (Slave Labor) Best Publication Design Acme Novelty Library #15, designed by Chris Ware (Fantagraphics) Drawn & Quarterly, vol. 4, designed by Chris Oliveros (Drawn & Quarterly) Non #5, designed by Jordan Crane (Red Ink) OPUS, vol. 2, designed by Barry Windsor-Smith (Fantagraphics) Red Star vol. 1: The Battle of Kar Dathra's Gate, designed by Team Red Star (Image) Scatterbrain, designed by Cary Grazzini and Craig Thompson (Dark Horse Maverick) Hall of Fame Judges' Choices: Charles Biro Osamu Tezuka Nominees (4 will be chosen): Sergio Aragones Vaughn Bode John Buscema Al Capp Nick Cardy Gene Colan Dan De Carlo Will Elder Lou Fine Herge Bernie Krigstein Joe Orlando John Romita John Severin John Stanley 2002 Eisner Awards Judges The submitted items were considered by a blue-ribbon panel of judges, who selected the final items to appear on the Eisner Awards ballot. This year's judges, chosen by Awards Administrator Jackie Estrada, are the following five people: Matt Lehman has been the owner and operator of Comicopia in Boston, Massachusetts, for 13 years and a comics retailer since 1986. He is an active member of the DC Comics RRP program and serves on the board of directors of PACER. Additionally, he has been a guest film reviewer on "Here and Now," a news show on WBUR, the Boston NPR affiliate. Lee Marrs has been a comics writer, penciller, inker, letterer, computer colorist, cover painter, and editor. One of the "founding mommies" of the Wimmen's Comix Collective and active in the alternative press with such titles as Pudge, Girl Blimp, she's done work for Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Heavy Metal, and many long-gone publishers (with the name-brand scripts being for Batman, Wonder Woman, and Indiana Jones). An Emmy Award-winning art director, she is the president of Lee Marrs Artwork, an animation company with clients such as Apple Computer, Time Warner Inc., Nickelodeon, and MTV. Marrs has lately shifted into interactive design and storytelling instruction at UC Berkeley Extension and SF State's Multimedia Center. She has also judged dozens of film festivals and art competitions. Greg McElhatton is the online reviewer for iComics.com. After serving on its steering committee for three years, he is the new executive director of the Small Press Expo, as well as on the steering committee for the Ignatz Awards. He was one of the original freelancers for Wizard magazine (1991-1996) as well as co-editor of the award-nominated anthology EXPO 2000. Calvin Reid is a news editor and reporter for Publishers Weekly. He has reviewed and written about comics and comics publishing for PW and other publications since 1987. He curr